Weiss Ratings Reiterates "Buy (B-)" Rating for SkyWest (NASDAQ:SKYW)

Key Points

• Weiss Ratings has reiterated a "Buy (B-)" rating for SkyWest (NASDAQ: SKYW) in a recent report, indicating confidence in the company's performance.
• SkyWest's stock was upgraded to a "strong-buy" rating by Raymond James Financial and has an average price target of $126.75, with several analysts rating it as a buy.
• In its last quarterly earnings, SkyWest reported earnings of $2.91 EPS, exceeding estimates, and a revenue increase of 19.4% year-over-year.

SkyWest (NASDAQ:SKYW - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy (b-)" rating reissued by equities researchers at Weiss Ratings in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of SkyWest from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of SkyWest from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of SkyWest from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $126.75.

SkyWest Trading Up 0.3%

SKYW opened at $99.57 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.13, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.86. The firm's 50 day moving average is $110.63 and its 200-day moving average is $102.56. SkyWest has a 52-week low of $74.70 and a 52-week high of $135.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

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

Insider Transactions at SkyWest

In other SkyWest news, insider Wade J. Steel sold 17,000 shares of SkyWest stock in a transaction on 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 of the company's stock, valued at $12,111,716.16. The trade was a 14.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director James L. Welch sold 10,000 shares of SkyWest stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.09, for a total transaction of $1,160,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 27,717 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,217,666.53. This represents a 26.51% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 89,186 shares of company stock valued at $10,440,398 over the last quarter. Insiders own 2.00% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SkyWest

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of SkyWest by 1,075.6% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 60,181 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $5,302,000 after acquiring an additional 55,062 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of SkyWest by 5.9% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,322 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $290,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of SkyWest by 11.5% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,741 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $152,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of SkyWest during the first quarter worth about $1,007,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of SkyWest by 47.2% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 47,497 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $4,150,000 after acquiring an additional 15,239 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.30% of the company's stock.

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.

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