Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $67.40, but opened at $69.76. Alaska Air Group shares last traded at $70.96, with a volume of 1,113,132 shares traded.
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%.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several equities research analysts have weighed in on ALK shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Melius raised 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 note on Monday, October 28th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $55.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Susquehanna upgraded shares of Alaska Air Group from a "neutral" rating to a "positive" rating and set a $95.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Alaska Air Group currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $74.86.
View Our Latest Stock Report on ALK
Insider Transactions at Alaska Air Group
In other news, SVP Andrea L. Schneider sold 3,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.50, for a total value of $234,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 21,086 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,338,961. This represents a 14.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 13,880 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.01, for a total transaction of $888,458.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 20,638 shares in the company, valued at $1,321,038.38. The trade was a 40.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 34,473 shares of company stock valued at $2,198,342. Insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALK. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 32.4% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,084,639 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $49,037,000 after purchasing an additional 265,343 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 54.7% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 57,577 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,591,000 after purchasing an additional 20,347 shares in the last quarter. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $772,000. Entropy Technologies LP lifted its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 358.9% in the third quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 27,428 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,240,000 after purchasing an additional 21,451 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 156.3% in the third quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 83,777 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $3,788,000 after purchasing an additional 51,096 shares in the last quarter. 81.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Alaska Air Group Stock Up 1.5 %
The company has a market cap of $8.87 billion, a PE ratio of 22.92, a P/E/G ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $61.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is $48.06.
About Alaska Air Group
(
Get Free Report)
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.
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