Reviewing Wheels Up Experience (NYSE:UP) and LATAM Airlines Group (OTCMKTS:LTMAQ)

LATAM Airlines Group (OTCMKTS:LTMAQ) and Wheels Up Experience (NYSE:UP) are both small-cap industrials companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability, risk and dividends.

Profitability

This table compares LATAM Airlines Group and Wheels Up Experience’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
LATAM Airlines Group	-59.52%	N/A	-31.39%
Wheels Up Experience	-42.04%	N/A	-30.08%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for LATAM Airlines Group and Wheels Up Experience, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
LATAM Airlines Group	0	0	0	0	0.00
Wheels Up Experience	1	0	0	0	1.00

Given LATAM Airlines Group’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe LATAM Airlines Group is more favorable than Wheels Up Experience.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares LATAM Airlines Group and Wheels Up Experience”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
LATAM Airlines Group	$4.88 billion	0.00	-$4.65 billion	($7.17)	N/A
Wheels Up Experience	$736.49 million	0.25	-$294.22 million	($8.46)	-0.61

Wheels Up Experience has lower revenue, but higher earnings than LATAM Airlines Group. Wheels Up Experience is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than LATAM Airlines Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

98.2% of Wheels Up Experience shares are owned by institutional investors. 7.8% of LATAM Airlines Group shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Wheels Up Experience shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Risk and Volatility

LATAM Airlines Group has a beta of 2.73, meaning that its stock price is 173% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Wheels Up Experience has a beta of 2.09, meaning that its stock price is 109% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

LATAM Airlines Group beats Wheels Up Experience on 6 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About LATAM Airlines Group

LATAM Airlines Group S.A., together with its subsidiaries, provides passenger and cargo air transportation services primarily in Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Brazil, other Latin American countries, the Caribbean, North America, Europe, and Oceania. As of June 30, 2022, it provided passenger transport services to 133 destinations in 20 countries and cargo services to approximately 141 destinations in 23 countries, with an operating fleet of 300 aircraft and subleased one B767 cargo freighter to a third party. The company was formerly known as LAN Airlines S.A. and changed its name to LATAM Airlines Group S.A. in June 2012. LATAM Airlines Group S.A. was founded in 1929 and is headquartered in Santiago, Chile. On May 26, 2020, LATAM Airlines Group S.A., along with its affiliates, filed a voluntary petition for reorganization under Chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.

About Wheels Up Experience

Wheels Up Experience Inc. provides private aviation services in the United States and internationally. The company offers Wheels Up Membership program that consists of two primary membership categories, such as Individual membership for individual and business fliers; and UP for Business membership consists of small and medium enterprise, and custom enterprise solutions for business fliers that tend to spend at higher levels. Its Wheels Up Charter provides charter flight services for passenger groups, sports teams, global corporate events, and tour operations, as well as global passenger, cargo, emergency, and government services. In addition, the company offers wholesale charter services; group charter and cargo flights; maintenance, repair, and operations services; fixed-base operator services; safety and security services; and government, defense, emergency, and medical transport missions. It serves individuals, small and medium enterprises, and corporate customers. As of December 31, 2024, the company operated a fleet of 154 owned and leased aircraft. Wheels Up Experience Inc. was founded in 2013 and is headquartered in Chamblee, Georgia.