LATAM Airlines Group (NYSE:LTM) Upgraded at Zacks Research

LATAM Airlines Group (NYSE:LTM) was upgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of LATAM Airlines Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Barclays dropped their price target on LATAM Airlines Group from $75.00 to $67.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $72.60 price target on shares of LATAM Airlines Group in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Citigroup raised LATAM Airlines Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $53.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of LATAM Airlines Group in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $64.40.

LATAM Airlines Group Trading Up 1.3%

LTM opened at $51.03 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $14.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 3.62. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $49.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $52.86. LATAM Airlines Group has a 12-month low of $36.41 and a 12-month high of $70.42.

LATAM Airlines Group (NYSE:LTM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The transportation company reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.66. The firm had revenue of $4.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.96 billion. LATAM Airlines Group had a net margin of 11.03% and a return on equity of 127.75%. On average, analysts predict that LATAM Airlines Group will post 4.34 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LATAM Airlines Group

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in LATAM Airlines Group by 79.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 535,389 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $24,226,000 after acquiring an additional 237,363 shares in the last quarter. BlueCrest Capital Management Ltd bought a new stake in shares of LATAM Airlines Group in the 3rd quarter worth $2,262,000. Element Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of LATAM Airlines Group in the third quarter worth $1,288,000. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA purchased a new position in shares of LATAM Airlines Group in the fourth quarter worth $5,822,000. Finally, SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda lifted its holdings in shares of LATAM Airlines Group by 3,884.5% during the third quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda now owns 935,321 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $42,323,000 after purchasing an additional 911,847 shares in the last quarter.

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.