Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) Receives $64.00 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $65.86.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on ALK shares. Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Alaska Air Group from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $72.00 price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Alaska Air Group from $55.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th.

Alaska Air Group Trading Down 0.3 %

ALK stock opened at $63.20 on Friday. Alaska Air Group has a 12-month low of $32.62 and a 12-month high of $65.62. The business’s 50-day moving average is $51.34 and its 200 day moving average is $43.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market cap of $8.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.48, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.60.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The transportation company reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $3.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.83 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Alaska Air Group will post 4.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alaska Air Group

In other Alaska Air Group news, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 13,880 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.01, for a total value of $888,458.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,638 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,321,038.38. The trade was a 40.21 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Andrea L. Schneider sold 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.50, for a total transaction of $234,950.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 21,086 shares in the company, valued at $1,338,961. This represents a 14.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 26,580 shares of company stock worth $1,693,569 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in 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 valued at $460,000 after buying an additional 215 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 2.7% in the third quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,271 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $419,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. boosted its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 4.7% in the third quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 5,938 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $268,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares during the period. Coastwise Capital Group LLC grew its stake in Alaska Air Group by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Coastwise Capital Group LLC now owns 5,354 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $242,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,770 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $397,000 after purchasing an additional 309 shares during the period. 81.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.