SkyWest, Inc. (NASDAQ:SKYW) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• SkyWest, Inc. has received a consensus rating of "Buy" from five brokerages, with an average price target of $126.75.
• Recent insider trading shows significant sales of stock by both the CFO and another insider, with shares sold totaling over $4 million between them, indicating a potential decrease in insider confidence.
• SkyWest reported a 19.4% year-over-year increase in quarterly revenue, achieving $1.04 billion and an EPS of $2.91, exceeding analysts' expectations.

Shares of SkyWest, Inc. (NASDAQ:SKYW - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus recommendation of "Buy" from the five brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $126.75.

A number of brokerages have commented on SKYW. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of SkyWest from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of SkyWest in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of SkyWest from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Wade J. Steel sold 17,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.26, for a total value of $2,010,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 102,416 shares in the company, valued at $12,111,716.16. This trade represents a 14.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Robert J. Simmons sold 17,186 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.46, for a total transaction of $2,018,667.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 114,017 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,392,436.82. This represents a 13.10% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 89,186 shares of company stock worth $10,440,398. Insiders own 2.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of SkyWest

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new position in shares of SkyWest during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in SkyWest during the first quarter worth about $32,000. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of SkyWest in the second quarter valued at about $40,000. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in shares of SkyWest by 38.4% in the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 551 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of SkyWest by 478.6% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 567 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 469 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.30% of the company's stock.

SkyWest Stock Performance

SkyWest stock traded down $0.05 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $100.02. 329,844 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 394,939. The stock has a market cap of $4.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.17, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.73. SkyWest has a 52-week low of $74.70 and a 52-week high of $135.57. The firm's 50 day moving average is $111.66 and its 200 day moving average is $102.38.

SkyWest (NASDAQ:SKYW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The transportation company reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.34 by $0.57. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $979.95 million. SkyWest had a net margin of 10.62% and a return on equity of 16.69%. SkyWest's quarterly revenue was up 19.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.82 EPS. Analysts predict that SkyWest will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SkyWest Company Profile

SkyWest, Inc is the holding company for two scheduled passenger airline operations and an aircraft leasing company. SkyWest's airline companies provide commercial air service in cities throughout North America with nearly 3,000 daily flights carrying more than 53 million passengers annually. SkyWest Airlines operates through partnerships with United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and Alaska Airlines.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.