Everence Capital Management Inc. Sells 9,400 Shares of Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK)

Everence Capital Management Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK - Free Report) by 56.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,210 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 9,400 shares during the period. Everence Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Alaska Air Group were worth $467,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 10,180 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $460,000 after acquiring an additional 215 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 2.7% during the third quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,271 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $419,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. boosted its stake in Alaska Air Group by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 5,938 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $268,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares during the period. Coastwise Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 6.0% in the third quarter. Coastwise Capital Group LLC now owns 5,354 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $242,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares during the period. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Alaska Air Group by 3.7% in the third quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,770 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $397,000 after purchasing an additional 309 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.90% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Alaska Air Group news, SVP Andrea L. Schneider sold 3,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.50, for a total value of $234,950.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 21,086 shares in the company, valued at $1,338,961. This trade represents a 14.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Muehlen Constance E. Von sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.09, for a total value of $252,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 12,162 shares of the company's stock, valued at $767,300.58. The trade was a 24.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 34,473 shares of company stock worth $2,198,342. 0.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on ALK. Citigroup raised their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $63.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $72.00 price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $58.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on Alaska Air Group from $68.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $65.86.

Alaska Air Group Stock Up 0.7 %

ALK stock traded up $0.45 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $64.43. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,628,176 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,207,452. The company has a market capitalization of $8.18 billion, a PE ratio of 25.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 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 stock has a 50 day moving average price of $56.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $45.56. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $32.62 and a 12 month high of $67.73.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The transportation company reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.22 by $0.03. Alaska Air Group had a return on equity of 12.81% and a net margin of 2.99%. The business had revenue of $3.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.83 earnings per share. Alaska Air Group's revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 4.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Alaska Air Group 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.