JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU) Stock Price Up 7.6% – Should You Buy?

JetBlue Airways Co. (NASDAQ:JBLU) shares rose 7.6% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $7.22 and last traded at $7.30. Approximately 4,076,866 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 23,176,410 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.78.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on JBLU. Barclays upped their price objective on JetBlue Airways from $5.00 to $7.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of JetBlue Airways from $8.00 to $6.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “sell” rating and issued a $5.50 price objective on shares of JetBlue Airways in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of JetBlue Airways from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $8.00 price target on shares of JetBlue Airways in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, JetBlue Airways presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $6.51.

JetBlue Airways Trading Down 1.2 %

The stock has a market cap of $2.56 billion, a PE ratio of -3.09 and a beta of 1.83. The business has a 50-day moving average of $7.27 and a 200 day moving average of $6.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.98, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a current ratio of 1.21.

JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The transportation company reported ($0.21) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.21. JetBlue Airways had a negative net margin of 8.57% and a negative return on equity of 9.29%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.19) EPS. Equities research analysts predict that JetBlue Airways Co. will post -0.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Ursula L. Hurley sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.50, for a total transaction of $112,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 41,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $313,747.50. This represents a 26.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Nik Mittal bought 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $6.14 per share, for a total transaction of $614,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 116,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $714,960.02. The trade was a 608.16 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of JetBlue Airways

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Forum Financial Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of JetBlue Airways during the 4th quarter valued at about $111,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new position in JetBlue Airways in the fourth quarter worth about $2,130,000. Vise Technologies Inc. bought a new stake in shares of JetBlue Airways in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $89,000. PharVision Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of JetBlue Airways during the fourth quarter worth $94,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of JetBlue Airways by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 193,054 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,517,000 after buying an additional 14,268 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.71% of the company’s stock.

JetBlue Airways Company Profile

JetBlue Airways Corporation provides air transportation services. The company operates a fleet of Airbus A321, Airbus A220, Airbus A321neo, Airbus A320 Restyled, Airbus A320, Airbus A321 with Mint, Airbus A321neo with Mint, Airbus A321neoLR with Mint, and Embraer E190 aircraft. It also serves 100 destinations across the United States, the Caribbean and Latin America, Canada, and Europe.