Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN) shares are ending the month on a positive note.
In afternoon trade, the airline operator's shares are up 1.5% to $5.28.
This means that the Flying Kangaroo's shares will record a monthly gain of over 7% if things stay the same way.
Why are Qantas shares outperforming?
This month has been a relatively quiet one for the company.
While Qantas held its fiery annual general meeting at the start of November, since then it has been largely out of the news. Which is not something that has been possible to say for some time.
This lack of negative news flow appears to have led to improved investor sentiment and allowed Qantas shares to start recovering after being sold down in previous months. And a recovery certainly was needed. From the end of July to the end of October, the company's shares lost approximately a quarter of their value.
Also giving Qantas shares a boost this month was a softer oil price. As things stand, the WTI crude oil price is on course to record a monthly decline of 4%. This should be good news for Qantas given how fuel makes up a significant portion of its costs.
Can its shares keep rising?
A number of brokers believe that Qantas shares have the potential to climb significantly from current levels.
One of the most bullish brokers is Goldman Sachs, which has a buy rating and a $8.25 price target on its shares. This implies a potential upside of 56% for investors over the next 12 months. It said:
Notwithstanding earnings cuts [from higher fuel expense], GSe FY24/25 EPS remains ~70% above pre-COVID levels. Despite this, QAN's market capitalisation and EV are 17% and 24% lower than pre-COVID levels. Retain Buy (on CL).
