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Here's Why You Should Invest in United Airlines (UAL) Stock

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United Airlines (UAL - Free Report) is benefiting from the strong air travel demand scenario. UAL’s fleet-upgrade efforts are praiseworthy, too. Owing to the tailwinds, United Airlines shares have performed impressively on the bourse. If you have not taken advantage of its share price appreciation yet, it’s time to do so.

Let’s take a look at the factors that make UAL stock a strong investment pick at the moment.

Robust Price Performance: A look at the company’s price trend reveals that its shares have risen 20.2% year to date, surpassing the industry’s 13.5% growth.

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Northward Estimate Revisions: The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings per share has been revised upward by 0.8% over the past 60 days for the current quarter. For the current year, the consensus mark for earnings per share has moved 2% north in the same time frame. The favorable estimate revisions indicate brokers’ confidence in the stock.

Impressive Earnings Surprise History: United Airlines has an impressive earnings surprise history. Its earnings outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, with an average surprise of 32.3%.

Solid Rank: UAL currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Driving Factors: United Airlines’ top line is bolstered by upbeat air travel demand. As a result, the company reported a 9.7% year-over-year increase in operating revenues in the first quarter of 2024, driven by a 10.1% rise in passenger revenues (which accounted for 90.2% of the top line) to $11.3 billion. Almost 39,325 passengers traveled on UAL flights in the first quarter, up 6.8% year over year.

The fuel price per gallon fell by 13.5% year over year to $2.88 per gallon.

In line with its environment-friendly approach, United Airlines operated the first commercial flight using 100% sustainable aviation fuel in one engine from Chicago to Washington, D.C. in late 2021. In June 2022, United Airlines and United Airlines Ventures invested in Dimensional Energy to further their goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 without relying on traditional carbon offsets.

Other Stocks to Consider

Some other top-ranked stocks for investors’ consideration in the Zacks Transportation sector include SkyWest (SKYW - Free Report) and Kirby Corporation (KEX - Free Report) , each sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

SkyWest has an expected earnings growth rate of 787% for the current year.

SKYW has an impressive earnings surprise history. Its earnings outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average surprise of 128%. Shares of SkyWest have jumped 106.8% in the past year.

KEX has an expected earnings growth rate of 42.5% for the current year.

The company has an encouraging track record with respect to the earnings surprise, having surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters. The average beat is 10.3%. Shares of Kirby have climbed 61.2% in the past year.


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