Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) COO Muehlen Constance E. Von Sells 22,157 Shares

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) COO Muehlen Constance E. Von sold 22,157 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.12, for a total value of $1,664,433.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 20,026 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,504,353.12. This represents a 52.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Alaska Air Group Trading Down 7.2 %

Shares of NYSE ALK traded down $5.39 during trading on Friday, reaching $69.97. The company had a trading volume of 3,760,134 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,785,302. The company's fifty day moving average price is $69.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.30. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $32.62 and a 12 month high of $78.08. The stock has a market cap of $8.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.94, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.52. Alaska Air Group had a return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 3.37%. As a group, research analysts expect that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ALK. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 22.6% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,144 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $142,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares in the last quarter. Jade Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 337.5% during the 3rd quarter. Jade Capital Advisors LLC now owns 175,000 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $7,912,000 after purchasing an additional 135,000 shares in the last quarter. Plan Group Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $356,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $86,270,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 2,087.8% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 762,889 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $34,490,000 after purchasing an additional 728,019 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on ALK shares. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Alaska Air Group from $85.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Melius raised Alaska Air Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $56.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, October 28th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Barclays boosted their price target on Alaska Air Group from $55.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Alaska Air Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $76.69.

About Alaska Air Group

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.