JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU) Trading Down 6.1% After Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• JetBlue shares fell 6.1% to about $5.31 after Seaport Research Partners downgraded the stock from Buy to Neutral. MarketBeat reports a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $5.40.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly negative: five firms rate JetBlue Sell, six rate it Hold, and only one rates it Strong Buy. Citigroup recently downgraded the stock to Sell and lowered its target to $5.30.
• JetBlue remains financially challenged, with a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.04, negative net margin and return on equity, and analysts expecting a full-year loss of $2.21 per share. Insiders sold 111,253 shares worth roughly $630,000 over the past 90 days.

JetBlue Airways Corporation (NASDAQ:JBLU - Get Free Report) shares fell 6.1% during mid-day trading on Monday after Seaport Research Partners downgraded the stock from a buy rating to a neutral rating. The company traded as low as $5.32 and last traded at $5.3050. 8,412,030 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 69% from the average session volume of 26,955,686 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.65.

Several other research firms have also commented on JBLU. UBS Group increased their target price on JetBlue Airways from $4.00 to $4.50 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on JetBlue Airways from $3.50 to $4.50 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of JetBlue Airways in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "underperform" rating on shares of JetBlue Airways in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Citigroup downgraded shares of JetBlue Airways from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and cut their target price for the company from $6.60 to $5.30 in a research note on Friday, August 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $5.40.

Insider Activity

In other JetBlue Airways news, CFO Ursula L. Hurley sold 77,253 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.76, for a total transaction of $444,977.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 211,099 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,215,930.24. This trade represents a 26.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Vivek Sharma sold 32,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.41, for a total transaction of $173,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 35,479 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $191,941.39. This represents a 47.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 111,253 shares of company stock worth $629,597 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.41% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its holdings in JetBlue Airways by 509.5% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 649,600 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,871,000 after acquiring an additional 543,017 shares in the last quarter. U S Global Investors Inc. grew its stake in shares of JetBlue Airways by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. U S Global Investors Inc. now owns 4,728,754 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $21,516,000 after buying an additional 219,622 shares in the last quarter. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC acquired a new position in JetBlue Airways in the second quarter worth approximately $6,890,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in JetBlue Airways by 235.9% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,246,200 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $9,928,000 after acquiring an additional 1,577,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new stake in JetBlue Airways in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,725,000. 83.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

JetBlue Airways Trading Down 6.1%

The company has a market cap of $2.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.22 and a beta of 1.74. The company's 50 day moving average price is $5.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $5.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.04, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.70.

JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The transportation company reported ($0.66) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.69) by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. JetBlue Airways had a negative return on equity of 45.92% and a negative net margin of 9.32%.The firm's revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.21) EPS. Research analysts anticipate that JetBlue Airways Corporation will post -2.21 EPS for the current year.

About JetBlue Airways

JetBlue Airways Corporation is a low-cost scheduled passenger airline headquartered in Long Island City, New York. Since commencing service in 2000, the carrier has built a reputation for combining competitive fares with enhanced onboard amenities, including free in-flight entertainment, complimentary snacks and beverages, and onboard Wi-Fi. JetBlue operates a single fleet type of Airbus A320 family and Embraer 190 aircraft, which supports its focus on efficiency and operational consistency.

The airline's core offerings include economy-class travel and a premium business-class product known as Mint, which features lie-flat seats, curated culinary options and elevated service on select transcontinental and international routes.

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