LATAM Airlines Group (NYSE:LTM) Stock Rating Upgraded by Morgan Stanley

LATAM Airlines Group (NYSE:LTM) was upgraded by analysts at Morgan Stanley from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Finviz reports. The firm presently has a $60.00 price target on the transportation company’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price points to a potential upside of 20.79% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Zacks Research cut shares of LATAM Airlines Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. 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 report on Tuesday, March 17th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of LATAM Airlines Group in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Barclays dropped their price objective on LATAM Airlines Group from $75.00 to $67.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $64.10 price objective on shares of LATAM Airlines Group and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, LATAM Airlines Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.28.

LATAM Airlines Group Stock Performance

Shares of LTM stock opened at $49.67 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $15.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.97, a PEG ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 3.89. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $57.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $51.47. LATAM Airlines Group has a 52-week low of $26.36 and a 52-week high of $70.42.

LATAM Airlines Group (NYSE:LTM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The transportation company reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.34. LATAM Airlines Group had a net margin of 10.07% and a return on equity of 136.61%. The business had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.81 billion. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that LATAM Airlines Group will post 3.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LATAM Airlines Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in LATAM Airlines Group by 79.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 535,389 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $24,226,000 after acquiring an additional 237,363 shares in the last quarter. Element Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in LATAM Airlines Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,288,000. BlueCrest Capital Management Ltd bought a new stake in shares of LATAM Airlines Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,262,000. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda increased its stake 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 buying an additional 911,847 shares during the period. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new stake in shares of LATAM Airlines Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $951,000.

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.