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Back in the late 1990s, after deregulation ushered in an era of lower costs and fewer creature comforts, Brazilian-American airline entrepreneur David Neeleman launched a new airline with one goal in mind: to bring “humanity back to air travel.” JetBlue Airways Corporation (JBLU) was incorporated in 1998 and began operations in Feb. 2000.
The airline is beloved among air travelers who rave over the free perks—unlimited brand-name drinks and snacks, in-flight WiFi, satellite radio, and DirecTV, not to mention its best-in-class legroom in coach. In addition, JetBlue was awarded the highest customer satisfaction in the first/business segment for the section straight year in 2023.
Key Takeaways
- JetBlue’s top shareholders include a number of current executives still employed with the firm.
- As part of their annual compensation, JetBlue executives receive stock awards—called restricted stock units—which are issued on a specific date after certain performance conditions are met.
- As of September 2023, JetBlue’s top institutional investors included Blackrock, Vanguard, and Dimensional.
- JetBlue CEO Robin Hayes has the top individual ownership followed by Joanna Geraghty and Brandon Nelson.
Top 3 Individual Shareholders
Below are three current employees that all rank as the top holders of JetBlue stock. Note that this section highlights only direct ownership shares and does not include indirect ownership of shares. Each individual owner represents less than 0.02% of total outstanding shares owned.
Robin Hayes
Robin Hayes took over as the company President in 2014 and then nearly a year later assumed the role of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Hayes was a JetBlue executive for seven years before that, joining the company after a 19-year career with British Airways. Hayes has overseen the expansion of Mint, JetBlue’s extremely popular premium cabin with lie-flat seats and private suites. According to Nasdaq, Hayes owned 623,532 shares as of November 11, 2023.
JetBlue boasts managing an average of 1,000 flights per day with over 40 million customers served.
Joanna Geraghty
Joanna Geraghty has been JetBlue’s President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) since May 2018. Geraghty joined the company in 2005 and was Executive Vice President of Customer Experience from 2015 to 2018 and was previously the airline’s Vice President and Associate General Counsel. Geraghty owns more than 248,000 shares of JetBlue stock as of April 2023.
Brandon Nelson
The next closest shareholder as of March 2023 was Brandon Nelson with 23,987 shares. Nelson is general counsel and corporate secretary having joined the company in 2005. Nelson serves on the investment committee of the company’s wholly owned corporate venture capital arm.
Top 3 Institutional Insider Shareholders
As of September 30, 2023, there were 389 institutional holders for JetBlue stock. Collectively, these institutions held over 242 million shares. Below are the three institutions with the largest ownership.
BlackRock Inc.
As of September 30, 2023, Blackrock owned bar far the most shares of JetBlue. The firm held 61, 172,802 shares, or roughly 18.4% of outstanding shares. According to BlackRock’s Q4 2023 financial results, the mutual fund firm held over $10 trillion of assets under management, a year-over-year increase of 16%.
BlackRock holds JBLU in several ETFs. In its iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF, the fund holds 22,678,103 shares, or 0.17% of the fund’s weight. It also carries over 8.1 million shares (0.08% of the ETF weight) in its iShares Russell 2000 ETF.
Vanguard Group Inc.
As of September 30, 2023, Vanguard Group held the second most JetBlue shares among institutional firms. It owned 36,705,537 shares, roughly 11% of outstanding shares. Vanguard, an investor-owned entity, offers 422 funds around the world and services more than 50 million investors as of the end of 2023. Vanguard operates a number of funds including the Vanguard S&P Small-Cap 600 Value ETF which holds 859,000 shares (0.32% of the portfolio weight) in JBLU.
Dimensional Fund Advisors LP
As of September 30, 2023, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP held the third most shares, barely beating out State Street Corp by about 500,000 shares. The firm held 13,397,424 shares, approximately 4% of all outstanding shares. In September 2023, the private investment firm announced it held over $100 billion in ETF AUM. One example of a Dimensional ETF that owns JetBlue is the Dimensional U.S. Small Cap Equity ETF.
Where Is JetBlue Headquartered?
JetBlue’s headquarters is located in Long Island City, New York.
When Was JetBlue Founded?
JetBlue was founded on August 1998 by David Neeleman. The airline started its operations in February 2000, making its first flight notably out of JFK airport.
What Is JetBlue’s Fleet Size?
JetBlue’s fleet consists of Airbus A320, Airbus A321, Airbus A220, and Embraer E190 aircraft.
The Bottom Line
JetBlue, launched in 2000, has emerged as one of the top airplane companies in the world. It’s top shareholders include Robin Hayes, Joanna Geraghty, and Brandon Nelson. It’s also heavily owned by institutional firms like BlackRock, Vanguard, and Dimensional.