10,600 Shares in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) Bought by Sunpointe LLC

Sunpointe LLC acquired a new stake in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 10,600 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $686,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FMR LLC raised 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 valued at $49,037,000 after buying an additional 265,343 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in Alaska Air Group by 54.7% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 57,577 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,591,000 after buying an additional 20,347 shares during the last quarter. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new stake in Alaska Air Group during the 4th quarter valued at $772,000. Entropy Technologies LP raised its stake in Alaska Air Group by 358.9% during the 3rd quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 27,428 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,240,000 after buying an additional 21,451 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP raised its stake in Alaska Air Group by 156.3% during the 3rd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 83,777 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $3,788,000 after buying an additional 51,096 shares during the last quarter. 81.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on ALK shares. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $55.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Melius upgraded Alaska Air Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $56.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Susquehanna upgraded Alaska Air Group from a "neutral" rating to a "positive" rating and set a $95.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Melius Research upgraded Alaska Air Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $56.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, October 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $76.69.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Emily Halverson sold 1,329 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.41, for a total transaction of $85,600.89. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 7,150 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $460,531.50. This trade represents a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 91,745 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.14, for a total transaction of $6,526,739.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,638 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,468,187.32. The trade was a 81.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 182,598 shares of company stock valued at $12,912,156 in the last ninety days. 0.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Alaska Air Group Price Performance

Shares of ALK traded down $5.39 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $69.97. 3,760,134 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,785,302. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $69.26 and a 200-day moving average of $53.30. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $32.62 and a 52 week high of $78.08. The stock has a market cap of $8.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.94, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.61.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. 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 net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 14.66%. On average, analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alaska Air Group Company 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.