JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU) Shares Down 8.7% After Insider Selling

JetBlue Airways Corporation (NASDAQ:JBLU) shares traded down 8.7% on Monday after an insider sold shares in the company. The company traded as low as $4.96 and last traded at $4.9950. 4,163,479 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 24,707,379 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.47.

Specifically, Director Vivek Sharma sold 32,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.41, for a total transaction of $173,120.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 35,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $191,941.39. This represents a 47.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of JetBlue Airways from $3.50 to $4.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. TD Cowen raised JetBlue Airways from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Susquehanna raised their price target on JetBlue Airways from $4.00 to $5.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “sell” rating and issued a $3.50 price objective on shares of JetBlue Airways in a research report on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of JetBlue Airways from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, JetBlue Airways presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $4.93.

Key Headlines Impacting JetBlue Airways

Here are the key news stories impacting JetBlue Airways this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JetBlue said travel demand remains strong across cabins and geographies, and it raised its second-quarter unit revenue outlook, suggesting bookings and pricing are holding up better than expected. JetBlue boosts its unit revenue outlook after seeing consistent demand trends
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s new Fort Lauderdale–Caracas route and broader Latin America expansion could open incremental revenue opportunities and support growth. Why JetBlue Airways (JBLU) Is Up 8.3% After Announcing First-Ever Fort Lauderdale–Caracas Route Expansion
• Positive Sentiment: JetBlue also highlighted overperformance on routes previously served by Spirit Airlines, which may help it capture displaced demand after Spirit’s shutdown. JetBlue Stock Tanks As Iran War Weighs On Fuel Prices

JetBlue Airways Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $1.83 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.54 and a beta of 1.73. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $4.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $4.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.25, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.64.

JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported ($0.87) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.59) earnings per share. JetBlue Airways’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that JetBlue Airways Corporation will post -2.78 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On JetBlue Airways

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in JetBlue Airways by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 326,990 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,488,000 after acquiring an additional 1,928 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC increased its position in JetBlue Airways by 20.2% during the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 13,232 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 2,226 shares during the period. Essex Financial Services Inc. increased its position in JetBlue Airways by 12.4% during the fourth quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 23,504 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $107,000 after acquiring an additional 2,599 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its stake in JetBlue Airways by 10.7% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 30,678 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $130,000 after buying an additional 2,954 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its stake in JetBlue Airways by 8.9% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 39,447 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $174,000 after buying an additional 3,238 shares in the last quarter. 83.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.