Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its stake in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK - Free Report) by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 606,889 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 30,838 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.48% of Alaska Air Group worth $27,437,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ALK. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Pacifica Partners Inc. grew its stake in Alaska Air Group by 952.4% during the third quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 1,105 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group during the second quarter worth approximately $69,000. Halpern Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $81,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 31.7% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,602 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $105,000 after acquiring an additional 626 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.90% of the company's stock.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Melius upgraded 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 report on Monday, October 28th. Melius Research upgraded shares of Alaska Air Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $56.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research report on Monday, October 21st. They set an "overweight" rating and a $55.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $51.00 to $48.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $54.17.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on ALK
Alaska Air Group Trading Up 1.1 %
Shares of NYSE:ALK traded up $0.58 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $52.03. The stock had a trading volume of 1,392,997 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,266,510. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $44.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.12. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $32.00 and a twelve month high of $52.70. The firm has a market cap of $6.60 billion, a PE ratio of 20.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93.
Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The transportation company reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.22 by $0.03. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 12.81%. The company had revenue of $3.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.83 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 4.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Alaska Air Group Company Profile
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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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