Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC Invests $251,000 in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK)

Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 3,871 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $251,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Alaska Air Group by 2.2% during the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 10,180 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $460,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Alaska Air Group by 2.7% in the third quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,271 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $419,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. raised its position in Alaska Air Group by 4.7% in the third quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 5,938 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $268,000 after acquiring an additional 267 shares during the period. Coastwise Capital Group LLC raised its position in Alaska Air Group by 6.0% in the third quarter. Coastwise Capital Group LLC now owns 5,354 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $242,000 after acquiring an additional 304 shares during the period. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Alaska Air Group by 3.7% in the third quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,770 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $397,000 after acquiring an additional 309 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Melius upgraded shares of Alaska Air Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $56.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Susquehanna upgraded shares of Alaska Air Group from a "neutral" rating to a "positive" rating and set a $95.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $68.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Alaska Air Group currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $72.57.

Alaska Air Group Price Performance

ALK traded down $1.07 during trading on Friday, hitting $66.35. 2,127,353 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,579,255. The company has a market cap of $8.42 billion, a PE ratio of 26.75, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.54. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $60.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $47.28. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $32.62 and a 1 year high of $69.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The transportation company reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.22 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $3.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3 billion. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 12.81%. Alaska Air Group's quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.83 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 4.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alaska Air Group

In other Alaska Air Group news, COO Muehlen Constance E. Von sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.09, for a total transaction of $252,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 12,162 shares in the company, valued at $767,300.58. This trade represents a 24.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Emily Halverson sold 1,329 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.41, for a total transaction of $85,600.89. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,150 shares of the company's stock, valued at $460,531.50. This trade represents a 15.67 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 34,473 shares of company stock worth $2,198,342 over the last 90 days. 0.92% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Alaska Air Group Profile

Alaska Air Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates airlines. It operates through three segments: Mainline, Regional, and Horizon. The company offers scheduled air transportation services on Boeing jet aircraft for passengers and cargo in the United States, and in parts of Canada, Mexico, Costa Rica, Belize, Guatemala, and the Bahamas; and for passengers across a shorter distance network within the United States, Canada, and Mexico.