JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU) Shares Down 7.3% – Should You Sell?

JetBlue Airways Corporation (NASDAQ:JBLU) shares traded down 7.3% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $4.84 and last traded at $4.7850. Approximately 15,615,815 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 39% from the average daily volume of 25,704,008 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.16.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on JBLU. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of JetBlue Airways from $3.50 to $4.50 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Citigroup raised their price target on JetBlue Airways from $4.40 to $6.60 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of JetBlue Airways in a 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, Wall Street Zen upgraded JetBlue Airways from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $5.31.

JetBlue Airways Stock Up 5.6%

The firm has a market cap of $1.96 billion, a PE ratio of -2.72 and a beta of 1.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.25, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.70. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $5.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $5.16.

JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported ($0.87) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.72) by ($0.15). JetBlue Airways had a negative net margin of 7.78% and a negative return on equity of 32.76%. The company had revenue of $2.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.24 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.59) earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that JetBlue Airways Corporation will post -2.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at JetBlue Airways

In other news, Director Thomas Winkelmann sold 35,473 shares of JetBlue Airways stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.70, for a total transaction of $166,723.10. Following the sale, the director owned 13,379 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,881.30. The trade was a 72.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Vivek Sharma sold 32,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.41, for a total value of $173,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 35,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $191,941.39. The trade was a 47.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 2.41% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in JetBlue Airways by 85.6% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 12,124,292 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $55,166,000 after buying an additional 5,591,470 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its holdings in shares of JetBlue Airways by 1,157.9% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,356,021 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $15,270,000 after acquiring an additional 3,089,226 shares during the period. Par Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of JetBlue Airways by 105.3% during the second quarter. Par Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,487,425 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $23,212,000 after acquiring an additional 2,814,870 shares during the last quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL purchased a new position in shares of JetBlue Airways during the fourth quarter worth approximately $8,795,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in shares of JetBlue Airways by 235.9% in the 1st 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 during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.71% of the company’s stock.

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.