Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Stock Price Expected to Rise, TD Cowen Analyst Says

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Free Report) had its price target boosted by TD Cowen from $85.00 to $110.00 in a report released on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. TD Cowen currently has a buy rating on the transportation company's stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on ALK. Melius raised Alaska Air Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $56.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Bank of America raised their target price on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Alaska Air Group from $58.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on 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. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Alaska Air Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One investment 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, Alaska Air Group has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $74.86.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

Shares of Alaska Air Group stock traded up $1.20 during trading on Friday, hitting $70.05. 1,412,040 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,873,211. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.57. Alaska Air Group has a 1 year low of $32.62 and a 1 year high of $71.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.95, a PEG ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.54. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $61.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $48.06.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.52. Alaska Air Group had a return on equity of 14.78% and a net margin of 3.37%. As a group, analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group will post 6.03 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Alaska Air Group

In related news, VP Emily Halverson sold 1,329 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.41, for a total transaction of $85,600.89. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 7,150 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $460,531.50. This trade represents a 15.67 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Shane R. Tackett sold 5,000 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.56, for a total value of $317,800.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,362 shares in the company, valued at $1,739,128.72. This trade represents a 15.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 34,473 shares of company stock valued at $2,198,342 over the last quarter. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Alaska Air Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $69,000. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in Alaska Air Group by 27.7% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 77,281 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $3,123,000 after acquiring an additional 16,743 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Alaska Air Group by 18.0% in the 2nd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 9,407 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $380,000 after acquiring an additional 1,435 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in Alaska Air Group by 678.5% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 105,876 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $4,277,000 after acquiring an additional 92,276 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $189,000. Institutional investors own 81.90% of the company's stock.

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.