Investors Purchase High Volume of American Airlines Group Call Options (NASDAQ:AAL)

American Airlines Group Inc. (NASDAQ:AAL) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Traders bought 107,973 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 33% compared to the average daily volume of 81,261 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AAL. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $19.00 target price on American Airlines Group in a report on Tuesday, October 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on American Airlines Group from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 2nd. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of American Airlines Group from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of American Airlines Group from $17.00 to $14.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of American Airlines Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 10th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $17.28.

American Airlines Group Stock Up 6.2%

AAL stock traded up $0.80 on Wednesday, reaching $13.62. 56,090,967 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 76,937,039. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $12.92 and a 200-day moving average of $13.54. American Airlines Group has a twelve month low of $10.09 and a twelve month high of $18.79. The firm has a market cap of $9.02 billion, a PE ratio of -18.66 and a beta of 1.45.

American Airlines Group (NASDAQ:AAL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The airline reported ($0.28) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.36) by $0.08. The company had revenue of $16.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.21 billion. American Airlines Group had a negative return on equity of 9.11% and a negative net margin of 0.79%. American Airlines Group’s quarterly revenue was up 19.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.17) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that American Airlines Group will post -1.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Airlines Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of American Airlines Group in the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Fiduciary Financial Advisors acquired a new position in shares of American Airlines Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Pinnacle Holdings LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Airlines Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its stake in American Airlines Group by 33.1% in the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 3,816 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 949 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in American Airlines Group by 622.8% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 4,192 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 3,612 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.44% of the company’s stock.

American Airlines Group Company Profile

American Airlines Group Inc is a holding company whose principal subsidiary, American Airlines, provides scheduled passenger air transportation and air cargo services. The company operates a large mainline network under the American Airlines brand and offers regional service through carriers operating as American Eagle. Its services include domestic and international flights, connecting passengers through a network of hubs and focus cities.

American Airlines serves destinations throughout the United States, as well as markets in Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central and South America, Europe, Asia and other international regions.