13,386 Shares in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) Bought by AXQ Capital LP

AXQ Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 13,386 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $867,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. FMR LLC increased its stake in Alaska Air Group by 32.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,084,639 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $49,037,000 after buying an additional 265,343 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake 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 worth $2,591,000 after acquiring an additional 20,347 shares during the last quarter. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $772,000. Quantbot Technologies LP raised its stake in Alaska Air Group by 156.3% in the 3rd 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 633,514 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $28,312,000 after purchasing an additional 24,796 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.90% of the company's stock.

Alaska Air Group Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:ALK traded up $0.01 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $53.84. 1,927,184 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,452,758. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $66.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $57.39. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $32.62 and a fifty-two week high of $78.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.61 and a quick ratio of 0.58. The stock has a market cap of $6.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.65, a P/E/G ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.50.

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Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 3.37%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Alaska Air Group

In other news, CEO Joseph A. Sprague sold 9,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.90, for a total transaction of $654,550.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 9,840 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $677,976. This represents a 49.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 91,745 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.14, for a total value of $6,526,739.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 20,638 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,468,187.32. This trade represents a 81.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 154,725 shares of company stock worth $11,217,263. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ALK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Susquehanna raised shares of Alaska Air Group from a "neutral" rating to a "positive" rating and set a $95.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. UBS Group lowered their target price on Alaska Air Group from $87.00 to $75.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Bank of America increased their price target on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $77.00.

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.