JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Positive Forecast for Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Stock Price

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) had its price objective hoisted by research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $85.00 to $89.00 in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the transportation company’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target suggests a potential upside of 36.78% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Alaska Air Group from $85.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $63.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Susquehanna upgraded shares of Alaska Air Group from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and set a $95.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $77.00.

Alaska Air Group Price Performance

Alaska Air Group stock opened at $65.07 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $70.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $55.33. Alaska Air Group has a 12-month low of $32.62 and a 12-month high of $78.08. The stock has a market cap of $8.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.33, a PEG ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.55.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.52. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 14.66%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Alaska Air Group will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Shane R. Tackett sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.56, for a total transaction of $317,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,739,128.72. The trade was a 15.45 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Joseph A. Sprague sold 2,325 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.38, for a total value of $149,683.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 19,340 shares in the company, valued at $1,245,109.20. This represents a 10.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 189,198 shares of company stock valued at $13,415,604 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALK. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group in the 4th quarter valued at $3,938,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter valued at $224,000. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter valued at $101,000. American Trust acquired a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter valued at $271,000. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 688.2% during the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 197,262 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $12,773,000 after buying an additional 172,236 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.90% of the company’s stock.

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.