brainhurts
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JetBlue Airways Shares Soar on Upgrade
© 2006 The Associated Press
NEW YORK — Shares of low-cost carrier JetBlue Airways Corp. jumped Wednesday, lifted by a Bear Stearns upgrade and US Airways Group Inc.'s $8 billion bid for Delta Air Lines Inc.
New York-based JetBlue's shares soared $1.26, or 8.9 percent, to $15.35 in morning trading on the Nasdaq, where the stock has ranged between $8.93 and $16.85 over the past year.
The overall airline sector surged after US Airways made its unsolicited cash and stock bid for Delta, which is operating in Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Analysts have long talked about the industry's ripeness for consolidation.
Bear Stearns analyst David Strine, meanwhile, upgraded JetBlue to "Outperform" from "Peer Perform."
In a research note, he wrote that US Airways' bid increases the probability of capacity reductions at Delta, a major JetBlue competitor at its home airport of John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.
Strine said he sees potential upside of at least 90 cents to his 2008 earnings-per-share estimate, which is 55 cents per share. Wall Street overall, on average, is looking for 64 cents in 2008 earnings per share, according to an analyst poll by Thomson Financial.
© 2006 The Associated Press
NEW YORK — Shares of low-cost carrier JetBlue Airways Corp. jumped Wednesday, lifted by a Bear Stearns upgrade and US Airways Group Inc.'s $8 billion bid for Delta Air Lines Inc.
New York-based JetBlue's shares soared $1.26, or 8.9 percent, to $15.35 in morning trading on the Nasdaq, where the stock has ranged between $8.93 and $16.85 over the past year.
The overall airline sector surged after US Airways made its unsolicited cash and stock bid for Delta, which is operating in Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Analysts have long talked about the industry's ripeness for consolidation.
Bear Stearns analyst David Strine, meanwhile, upgraded JetBlue to "Outperform" from "Peer Perform."
In a research note, he wrote that US Airways' bid increases the probability of capacity reductions at Delta, a major JetBlue competitor at its home airport of John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.
Strine said he sees potential upside of at least 90 cents to his 2008 earnings-per-share estimate, which is 55 cents per share. Wall Street overall, on average, is looking for 64 cents in 2008 earnings per share, according to an analyst poll by Thomson Financial.
