United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Shares of United Airlines Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:UAL) gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $89.95, but opened at $95.84. United Airlines shares last traded at $94.29, with a volume of 2,385,832 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UAL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank of America upped their target price on United Airlines from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of United Airlines from $147.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of United Airlines in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of United Airlines from $117.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $150.00 price objective on shares of United Airlines and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Airlines has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $131.14.

United Airlines Trading Up 5.2%

The company has a market cap of $30.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 1.25. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $105.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $103.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35.

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The transportation company reported $3.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.13. United Airlines had a return on equity of 25.13% and a net margin of 5.68%.The business had revenue of $15.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.35 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.26 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. United Airlines has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.000-1.500 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 12.000-14.000 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that United Airlines Holdings Inc will post 12.96 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United Airlines news, President Brett J. Hart sold 19,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total transaction of $2,022,550.00. Following the sale, the president directly owned 264,638 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,170,715.10. This represents a 6.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.63% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of UAL. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in United Airlines during the fourth quarter worth about $234,244,000. Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new position in United Airlines in the second quarter valued at approximately $84,753,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of United Airlines by 56.8% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,928,657 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $325,549,000 after purchasing an additional 1,060,371 shares during the last quarter. Lansdowne Partners UK LLP bought a new position in shares of United Airlines during the second quarter valued at approximately $68,177,000. Finally, Capital World Investors raised its position in shares of United Airlines by 12.1% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 7,243,066 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $698,977,000 after purchasing an additional 783,551 shares during the period. 69.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Airlines Company Profile

United Airlines Holdings, Inc operates United Airlines, a major U.S. full-service passenger carrier providing scheduled air transportation for passengers and cargo. The company offers a comprehensive route network that covers domestic markets across the United States as well as extensive international service to Europe, Asia, Latin America, and the Pacific. United operates a mixed fleet of narrow- and wide-body aircraft on point-to-point and hub-and-spoke routes, and supports corporate and leisure travel through offerings such as premium cabins, basic economy, and ancillary services including baggage, seat selection and in-flight amenities.

In addition to passenger operations, United provides cargo services through United Cargo, handling freight, mail and specialized shipments.