Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Hits New 1-Year High - Should You Buy?

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $76.45 and last traded at $75.13, with a volume of 2617564 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $75.92.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $63.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Susquehanna raised shares of Alaska Air Group from a "neutral" rating to a "positive" rating and set a $95.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Bank of America lifted their target price 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, January 17th. Finally, Melius raised shares of Alaska Air Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $56.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, October 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alaska Air Group has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $74.86.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

The business's 50-day moving average price is $67.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $51.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.61. The stock has a market cap of $9.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.55.

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

Insider Activity at Alaska Air Group

In other Alaska Air Group news, CFO Shane R. Tackett sold 22,893 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.74, for a total value of $1,733,915.82. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 31,873 shares in the company, valued at $2,414,061.02. The trade was a 41.80 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 91,745 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.14, for a total transaction of $6,526,739.30. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 20,638 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,468,187.32. The trade was a 81.64 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 160,441 shares of company stock worth $11,247,722. 0.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Alaska Air Group

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Alaska Air Group by 32.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,084,639 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $49,037,000 after purchasing an additional 265,343 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 54.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 57,577 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $2,591,000 after buying an additional 20,347 shares during the last quarter. Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group in the 4th quarter worth about $772,000. Entropy Technologies LP increased its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 358.9% in the 3rd quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 27,428 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,240,000 after buying an additional 21,451 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP increased its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 156.3% in the 3rd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 83,777 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $3,788,000 after buying an additional 51,096 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.90% of the company's stock.

Alaska Air Group Company 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.