Algert Global LLC Takes Position in SkyWest, Inc. (NASDAQ:SKYW)

Algert Global LLC acquired a new position in shares of SkyWest, Inc. (NASDAQ:SKYW) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 18,212 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,824,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Comerica Bank grew its position in SkyWest by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 14,786 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,481,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in SkyWest by 34.4% in the fourth quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 11,610 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,163,000 after purchasing an additional 2,970 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in SkyWest by 18.5% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 110,995 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $11,114,000 after buying an additional 17,332 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in SkyWest by 12.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 472,763 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $47,338,000 after buying an additional 51,607 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of SkyWest by 94.1% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,023 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $102,000 after buying an additional 496 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.30% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Greg Wooley sold 14,545 shares of SkyWest stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.73, for a total transaction of $1,537,842.85. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 68,737 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,267,563.01. The trade was a 17.46 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Robert J. Simmons sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.57, for a total transaction of $681,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 175,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,882,359.19. This trade represents a 3.31 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SKYW has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Raymond James cut their price objective on SkyWest from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of SkyWest from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of SkyWest from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $119.00 to $117.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 8th.

SkyWest Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of SKYW stock opened at $99.54 on Friday. SkyWest, Inc. has a 12 month low of $64.61 and a 12 month high of $135.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $4.03 billion, a PE ratio of 12.81 and a beta of 1.88. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $88.29 and a 200-day moving average of $100.75.

SkyWest (NASDAQ:SKYW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The transportation company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.38. SkyWest had a net margin of 9.15% and a return on equity of 14.17%. The firm had revenue of $948.46 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $946.13 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.45 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that SkyWest, Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

SkyWest announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, May 7th that allows the company to repurchase $250.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the transportation company to purchase up to 6.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

SkyWest Company Profile

SkyWest, Inc is the holding company for two scheduled passenger airline operations and an aircraft leasing company. SkyWest’s airline companies provide commercial air service in cities throughout North America with nearly 3,000 daily flights carrying more than 53 million passengers annually. SkyWest Airlines operates through partnerships with United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and Alaska Airlines.