LATAM Airlines Group (NYSE:LTM) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

LATAM Airlines Group S.A. (NYSE:LTM) shares gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $49.29, but opened at $50.99. LATAM Airlines Group shares last traded at $51.3270, with a volume of 54,204 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded LATAM Airlines Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of LATAM Airlines Group in a report on Friday, July 17th. Zacks Research downgraded LATAM Airlines Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $72.60 price target on shares of LATAM Airlines Group in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on LATAM Airlines Group in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $70.00 price target for the company. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.27.

LATAM Airlines Group Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $14.90 billion, a PE ratio of 9.54, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 3.64. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $53.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $52.27.

LATAM Airlines Group (NYSE:LTM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The transportation company reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $4.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.06 billion. LATAM Airlines Group had a return on equity of 101.21% and a net margin of 9.69%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that LATAM Airlines Group S.A. will post 4.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LATAM Airlines Group

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LTM. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in LATAM Airlines Group by 49.1% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 747 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 246 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in LATAM Airlines Group by 684.3% during the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,302 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 1,136 shares during the period. Leonteq Securities AG bought a new stake in LATAM Airlines Group during the 4th quarter valued at $78,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC bought a new stake in LATAM Airlines Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $90,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of LATAM Airlines Group by 26.2% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,647 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $96,000 after acquiring an additional 342 shares during the period.

About LATAM Airlines Group

LATAM Airlines Group SA is a Chilean-based airline holding company formed in 2012 through the merger of LAN Airlines of Chile and TAM Linhas Aéreas of Brazil. The Group offers passenger and cargo air transportation services across South America and beyond, operating under a multi‐brand strategy that encompasses several nationally recognized carriers. Headquartered in Santiago, Chile, LATAM is structured to serve diverse market segments with full-service, premium and low‐cost offerings.

The core business activities of LATAM Airlines Group include scheduled domestic and international passenger flights, air cargo services and maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) capabilities through its technical divisions.