Sun Country Airlines Holdings, Inc.
operates as a hybrid airline providing scheduled passenger service, air cargo, and charter flights. The company has strategically positioned itself as a unique, value-focused carrier, leveraging its flexible business model to serve both leisure travelers and cargo customers efficiently.
Updated: January 14, 2026, 16:00 EST
Based on a comprehensive review of SNCY's technical, fundamental, and valuation metrics, the stock presents a high-risk, speculative profile not suitable for most investors.
Technical & Momentum: While the stock's recent momentum is undeniably strong, trading near its 52-week high with a high beta and substantial historical drawdown suggests it is overbought and prone to sharp corrections.
Fundamental Weakness: The core issue is deteriorating profitability, with net income margins collapsing and key returns (ROE/ROA) near zero. Combined with concerning liquidity and weak interest coverage, the financial health is precarious.
Valuation & Risk: The valuation is challenged by a soaring forward P/E and negative earnings growth expectations. The primary risk is high volatility, meaning recent gains could quickly reverse in a market downturn.
Recommendation: HOLD / NOT A BUY. The impressive price momentum is not supported by the underlying fundamentals. The combination of profitability pressures, weak financial health, and high volatility makes the risk/reward unattractive. Investors should wait for clear signs of sustainable profit improvement before considering a position.
Of course. Here is a 12-month outlook for SNCY:
12-Month Outlook for SNCY
The primary catalyst for SNCY will be its ability to defy its weak fundamentals and sustain its current strong momentum, potentially fueled by speculative or sector-specific narratives. However, significant risks dominate the outlook, primarily stemming from its collapsing profitability, precarious financial health, and a valuation that appears disconnected from its earnings trajectory. While no analyst target is provided, the high volatility suggests a wide potential price range, but the risk of a sharp correction to align with its weaker fundamentals is substantial. Investors should approach any potential gains with caution, as they appear vulnerable to a market shift or disappointing earnings news.
Most Wall Street analysts are optimistic about SNCY's 12-month outlook, with consensus target around $17.18, indicating expected upside potential.
Overall, SNCY has investment potential but also faces challenges. Here are key factors to weigh before investing.
Overall Assessment SNCY has demonstrated exceptional strong momentum with substantial gains of 14.73% over one month and 52.46% over three months significantly outperforming the market by 49.09% during this period.
Short-term Performance The stock's remarkable 52.46% surge over three months combined with its positive relative strength indicates strong bullish momentum that has substantially exceeded broader market returns. This performance is particularly notable given the stock's high beta of 1.578 suggesting it has captured significant upside during recent market movements.
Current Position Trading at $17.06 SNCY sits near the upper end of its 52-week range ($8.1 to $18.59) approximately 85% toward its 52-week high indicating potential overbought conditions. Despite the strong recent performance investors should note the substantial 54.82% maximum drawdown over the past year highlighting the stock's historical volatility and risk profile.
| Period | SNCY Return | S&P 500 |
|---|---|---|
| 1m | +15.8% | +1.3% |
| 3m | +59.5% | +5.7% |
| 6m | +37.0% | +10.6% |
| 1y | +7.3% | +16.5% |
| ytd | +18.6% | +1.1% |
Revenue & Profitability SNCY demonstrates solid revenue generation but faces profit margin compression. While Q3 2025 revenue remained strong at $255.5 million, net income margin declined sharply to 0.6% from 2.5% in Q2, primarily due to elevated operating expenses. The operating income ratio similarly contracted from 6.2% to 3.9%, indicating pressured profitability despite maintaining a healthy gross margin above 63%.
Financial Health The company maintains moderate leverage with a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94 and total debt to capitalization of 48.5%, though liquidity is concerning with current and quick ratios below 1.0. Interest coverage of just 0.21 raises concerns about earnings sufficiency to service debt, while the cash flow to debt ratio of 0.07 suggests limited capacity for debt reduction from operating cash flows.
Operational Efficiency SNCY shows weak returns with ROE at 0.25% and ROA at 0.10%, reflecting inefficient capital utilization. The asset turnover of 0.16 indicates poor revenue generation relative to asset base, though working capital management appears efficient with a negative cash conversion cycle of -21 days. Fixed asset turnover of 0.27 suggests underutilization of long-term assets in driving revenue.
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Try Now & Get Tesla Stock RewardSNCY appears moderately valued based on current metrics, trading at a PE ratio of 19.56 (TTM) which is reasonable, but a forward PE of 101.2 indicates significantly lower earnings expectations. The stock trades at a discount to sales with a PS ratio of 0.84, while the PB ratio of 1.51 suggests fair asset valuation. However, the negative PEG ratio of -1.52 reflects negative earnings growth expectations, making valuation assessment challenging despite the superficially attractive multiples.
Without specific industry average data provided, a detailed peer comparison cannot be conducted. Generally, SNCY's valuation would need to be contextualized against industry peers' PE, PB, and PS ratios to determine relative positioning. The elevated forward PE and negative growth metrics would likely compare unfavorably to most industry averages if available, suggesting potential overvaluation concerns absent supportive growth prospects.
Based on the provided metrics, SNCY exhibits substantial volatility risk. With a Beta of 1.578, the stock is approximately 58% more volatile than the broader market, indicating it is likely to experience larger price swings. This high sensitivity is further evidenced by a severe maximum drawdown of -54.82% over the past year, suggesting significant downside volatility and potential for substantial capital loss during market downturns.
The notable absence of reported short interest suggests that the market does not currently harbor a strong, concentrated bearish sentiment against the stock. However, this lack of short interest does not eliminate other liquidity or operational risks. Given the high volatility, lower trading volumes could exacerbate price gaps and pose challenges for executing large orders without significant market impact.
Bearish - Not recommended for new purchases at current levels. While the acquisition premium provides upside, the stock appears overbought after its 52% surge and faces profitability pressures with negative earnings growth expectations. This high-volatility stock suits primarily speculative investors comfortable with substantial downside risk, particularly given regulatory and integration challenges from the pending merger.
Based on the provided data, SNCY stock appears moderately overvalued.
The key valuation metrics show concerning signals: a reasonable trailing PE of 19.56 is overshadowed by an extremely high forward PE of 101.2, indicating severely diminished future earnings expectations. While the Price-to-Sales (PS) ratio of 0.84 suggests a discount on revenue, the negative PEG ratio of -1.52 is a major red flag, reflecting negative earnings growth projections that make the stock difficult to justify at its current price.
The primary reason for this overvaluation stems from weak fundamentals. The company is experiencing significant profitability compression (net income margin fell to 0.6%), very low returns (ROE of 0.25%), and concerns about its ability to service debt (interest coverage of 0.21). The high forward PE ratio is pricing in a future recovery that the current operational and financial metrics do not adequately support.
Of course. Based on the provided information, here are the key risks of holding SNCY stock, ordered by importance.
1. High Volatility and Substantial Drawdown Risk The stock's high beta of 1.578 indicates it is significantly more volatile than the market, which is confirmed by a severe maximum drawdown of -54.82% over the past year, demonstrating a pronounced risk of sharp capital depreciation during market downturns.
2. Pressured Profitability and Weak Debt Servicing Ability The company faces profit margin compression (net income margin fell to 0.6%) and has a critically low interest coverage ratio of 0.21, indicating its current earnings are insufficient to cover interest payments, creating significant financial risk.
3. Potential Overbought Conditions Following Exceptional Rally After a 52.46% surge in three months, the stock trades near the top of its 52-week range, suggesting it may be overextended and vulnerable to a technical correction or profit-taking sell-off.
4. Poor Operational Efficiency and Asset Utilization Weak returns (ROE of 0.25%, ROA of 0.10%) and a low asset turnover ratio of 0.16 reflect inefficient use of capital and assets, posing a fundamental business risk to long-term value creation.
Of course. Based on the provided data, here is a professional forecast for SNCY stock through 2026.
1. Target Price Range: * Base Case (2026): $12 - $16. This scenario assumes SNCY continues to struggle with profitability and operational efficiency, leading to a gradual re-rating of its valuation as momentum fades. * Bull Case (2026): $20 - $24. This is contingent on a successful strategic turnaround, where the company demonstrates sustained margin improvement and achieves higher asset utilization, justifying a premium.
2. Key Growth Drivers: * Margin Expansion: Reversing the trend of profit margin compression by controlling operating expenses is the single most important driver for value creation. * Operational Efficiency: Improving asset turnover and returns on equity (ROE/ROA) by better utilizing the company's asset base to generate revenue and profits. * Balance Sheet Strengthening: Addressing the weak liquidity (current ratio <1.0) and improving interest coverage to reduce financial risk and instill investor confidence.
3. Main Assumptions: * The current high valuation is not sustainable without significant improvement in fundamental profitability. * The company will execute on plans to address its operational inefficiencies and cost structure. * Macroeconomic conditions remain stable, without a major downturn that would exacerbate its financial weaknesses.
4. Uncertainty of the Forecast: This forecast carries high uncertainty due to the stark divergence between SNCY's weak fundamentals (profitability, efficiency, liquidity) and its current market price. The stock's path will be highly sensitive to quarterly earnings results that either confirm a turnaround or expose persistent weaknesses, likely leading to high volatility.