SkyWest (NASDAQ:SKYW) Shares Gap Up After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

SkyWest, Inc. (NASDAQ:SKYW) gapped up before the market opened on Friday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $96.24, but opened at $100.04. SkyWest shares last traded at $102.4180, with a volume of 51,110 shares changing hands.

The transportation company reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.01. SkyWest had a net margin of 10.42% and a return on equity of 15.55%. The business had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.11 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.91 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on SKYW shares. Weiss Ratings raised shares of SkyWest from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Citigroup raised their price objective on SkyWest from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded SkyWest from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $126.00 to $115.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price target on SkyWest from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $121.17.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in shares of SkyWest by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 23,590 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,061,000 after purchasing an additional 1,034 shares during the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association bought a new stake in shares of SkyWest in the 1st quarter valued at about $227,000. M&T Bank Corp lifted its stake in SkyWest by 7.6% in the 2nd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 2,825 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $290,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in SkyWest by 118.5% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 625 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 339 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in SkyWest by 8.8% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 85,577 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $8,812,000 after purchasing an additional 6,938 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.30% of the company’s stock.

SkyWest Trading Up 7.1%

The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $91.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $94.38. The stock has a market cap of $4.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.51.

SkyWest Company Profile

SkyWest, Inc (NASDAQ: SKYW) is a regional airline holding company that provides air transportation services through its primary subsidiary, SkyWest Airlines. The company operates flights under capacity purchase agreements with major carriers such as United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and Alaska Airlines. By specializing in regional connectivity, SkyWest links smaller communities to larger hubs using a fleet of regional jets and turboprop aircraft.

Headquartered in St. George, Utah, SkyWest oversees all aspects of its airline operations, including flight scheduling, crew training and aircraft maintenance.