LATAM Airlines Group S.A. (NYSE:LTM) Stock Short Interest Climbs 73.2%

LATAM Airlines Group S.A. (NYSE:LTM) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totaling 3,204,337 shares, a growth of 73.2% from the August 31st total of 1,850,400 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 764,673 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.2 days. Currently, 1.2% of the company’s stock are sold short.

LATAM Airlines Group Stock Performance

Shares of LTM stock opened at $47.69 on Friday. LATAM Airlines Group has a 52 week low of $41.41 and a 52 week high of $70.42. The company has a market capitalization of $13.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.77, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 3.64. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $52.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $51.92.

LATAM Airlines Group (NYSE:LTM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The transportation company reported $0.44 earnings per share 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 analysts’ expectations of $4.06 billion. LATAM Airlines Group had a net margin of 9.69% and a return on equity of 101.21%. Sell-side analysts forecast that LATAM Airlines Group will post 4.96 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded LATAM Airlines Group from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Zacks Research cut LATAM Airlines Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded LATAM Airlines Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of LATAM Airlines Group in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $70.00 target price for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.27.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LATAM Airlines Group

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda increased its position in LATAM Airlines Group by 168.5% during the 1st quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda now owns 881,976 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $43,605,000 after buying an additional 553,513 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of LATAM Airlines Group by 184.9% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,267,200 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $62,650,000 after buying an additional 822,400 shares in the last quarter. Navi International Administradora e Gestora de Recursos Financeiros Ltda. boosted its position in shares of LATAM Airlines Group by 1,478.6% in the second quarter. Navi International Administradora e Gestora de Recursos Financeiros Ltda. now owns 326,007 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $18,996,000 after acquiring an additional 305,355 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of LATAM Airlines Group in the first quarter valued at about $746,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of LATAM Airlines Group by 641.9% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 346,402 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $17,126,000 after acquiring an additional 299,710 shares in the last quarter.

About LATAM Airlines Group

LATAM Airlines Group SA is a Chile-based airline holding company and one of the largest air transportation groups in Latin America. Through its LATAM Airlines affiliates, the group provides scheduled passenger and cargo air services to domestic and international destinations.

The company serves markets across South America, including Chile, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru, as well as destinations in North America, the Caribbean, Europe, and Oceania. Its operations include domestic routes within several Latin American countries, international passenger services, and air freight transportation.

LATAM Airlines Group was created in 2012 through the merger of Chile’s LAN Airlines and Brazil’s TAM Airlines.