JetBlue Airways’ (JBLU) “Underperform” Rating Reaffirmed at Raymond James Financial

Raymond James Financial reaffirmed their underperform rating on shares of JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU) in a report published on Monday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. TD Cowen raised JetBlue Airways from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Susquehanna upped their price target on JetBlue Airways from $4.00 to $5.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. UBS Group increased their price target on JetBlue Airways from $4.00 to $4.50 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of JetBlue Airways from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of JetBlue Airways in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $5.31.

JetBlue Airways Trading Down 4.2%

Shares of JBLU stock opened at $5.80 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $5.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.09. 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 has a market capitalization of $2.16 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.99 and a beta of 1.73. JetBlue Airways has a fifty-two week low of $3.87 and a fifty-two week high of $6.50.

JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU) last issued 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). The business had revenue of $2.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.24 billion. JetBlue Airways had a negative net margin of 7.78% and a negative return on equity of 32.76%. JetBlue Airways’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.59) earnings per share. Research analysts expect that JetBlue Airways will post -2.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Trading of JetBlue Airways

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in JBLU. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of JetBlue Airways by 85.6% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 12,124,292 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $55,166,000 after purchasing an additional 5,591,470 shares during the last quarter. U S Global Investors Inc. lifted its position in shares of JetBlue Airways by 17.2% during the 1st quarter. U S Global Investors Inc. now owns 5,542,536 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $24,498,000 after purchasing an additional 813,782 shares during the last quarter. Par Capital Management Inc. grew its stake 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 purchasing an additional 2,814,870 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of JetBlue Airways by 10.1% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,513,312 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $19,091,000 after purchasing an additional 412,921 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG increased its holdings in 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 buying an additional 3,089,226 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.71% of the company’s stock.

JetBlue Airways News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Susquehanna raised its price target on JetBlue Airways from $5.00 to $6.00, suggesting limited downside from current levels even though it kept a neutral rating. Benzinga report on Susquehanna price target raise
• Neutral Sentiment: JetBlue was also the subject of an additional price-target update to $6.00, reinforcing that analysts see the shares as fairly valued near current prices. American Banking News article
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry commentary noted that lower jet-fuel prices have not translated into meaningfully lower fares, which may help airline margins but does not appear to be driving a clear near-term catalyst for JetBlue. Wall Street Journal article on fuel and fares
• Negative Sentiment: Raymond James reiterated an underperform rating and said Chapter 11 could be JetBlue’s best option as its debt burden remains a major concern, a clear negative for the stock. Seeking Alpha article on Raymond James comment
• Negative Sentiment: Another report said JetBlue is facing “fresh pressure,” adding to investor concerns about the airline’s balance sheet and earnings outlook. Kalkine Media article

JetBlue Airways Company Profile

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.