SkyWest, Inc. (NASDAQ:SKYW) Shares Purchased by Gotham Asset Management LLC

Gotham Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of SkyWest, Inc. (NASDAQ:SKYW - Free Report) by 8.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 72,412 shares of the transportation company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,409 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.18% of SkyWest worth $7,251,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of SkyWest by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 19,500 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,953,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its position in shares of SkyWest by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 9,495 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $951,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of SkyWest by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 4,145 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $415,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the period. Highland Capital Management LLC boosted its position in SkyWest by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC now owns 2,783 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $279,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Comerica Bank boosted its position in SkyWest by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 14,786 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,481,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.30% of the company's stock.

SkyWest Stock Performance

SKYW stock traded up $0.96 on Friday, hitting $102.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 289,367 shares, compared to its average volume of 397,138. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $89.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $101.04. SkyWest, Inc. has a 1 year low of $64.61 and a 1 year high of $135.57. The stock has a market cap of $4.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.21 and a beta of 1.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89.

SkyWest (NASDAQ:SKYW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The transportation company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.38. The company had revenue of $948.46 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $946.13 million. SkyWest had a net margin of 9.15% and a return on equity of 14.17%. SkyWest's quarterly revenue was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.45 EPS. Equities analysts predict that SkyWest, Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SkyWest declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, May 7th that authorizes the company to repurchase $250.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the transportation company to reacquire up to 6.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on SKYW. StockNews.com raised shares of SkyWest from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of SkyWest from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and cut their target price for the stock from $119.00 to $117.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Raymond James lowered their price target on shares of SkyWest from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Greg Wooley sold 14,545 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.73, for a total value of $1,537,842.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 68,737 shares in the company, valued at $7,267,563.01. This trade represents a 17.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About SkyWest

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.