Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) Shares Sold by Holocene Advisors LP

Holocene Advisors LP cut its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK - Free Report) by 71.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 189,835 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 466,960 shares during the quarter. Holocene Advisors LP owned about 0.15% of Alaska Air Group worth $8,582,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 69,382 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,983,000 after acquiring an additional 3,652 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 211.7% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 47,770 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,054,000 after acquiring an additional 32,442 shares during the period. Cetera Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Alaska Air Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $227,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 31.7% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,602 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $105,000 after acquiring an additional 626 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC raised its position in Alaska Air Group by 13.0% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,403 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $178,000 after purchasing an additional 507 shares in the last quarter. 81.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ALK has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Bank of America increased their price target on Alaska Air Group from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target 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. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $72.00 price target on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Melius raised Alaska Air Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $56.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Alaska Air Group presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $60.08.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

Shares of ALK stock traded up $1.86 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $54.41. The company had a trading volume of 1,618,958 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,235,311. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $48.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $42.12. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $32.62 and a 52-week high of $54.66. The stock has a market cap of $6.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.19, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.60. 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 (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The transportation company reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $3.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.83 EPS. The company's revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 4.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.