Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Reaches New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $46.16 and last traded at $46.01, with a volume of 156762 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $44.69.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on ALK. TD Cowen dropped their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $52.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Alaska Air Group from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Susquehanna upped their price target on Alaska Air Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $53.60.

Alaska Air Group Trading Up 3.2 %

The company has a market capitalization of $5.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.89, a P/E/G ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $38.93 and a 200 day simple moving average of $40.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.68.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 18th. The transportation company reported $2.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $2.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.94 billion. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 2.14% and a return on equity of 11.85%. Alaska Air Group’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.00 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ALK. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky increased its stake in Alaska Air Group by 145.4% during the fourth quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 27,003 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,055,000 after acquiring an additional 16,000 shares during the period. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp grew its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 23.1% during the 1st quarter. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp now owns 62,868 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,703,000 after purchasing an additional 11,796 shares in the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC increased its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 17.1% during the first quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 2,230 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $96,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares during the period. Executive Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 200.0% in the first quarter. Executive Wealth Group LLC now owns 41,913 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,802,000 after purchasing an additional 27,942 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Washington Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Alaska Air Group by 97.3% in the first quarter. Washington Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,800 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $636,000 after purchasing an additional 7,300 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.90% of the company’s stock.

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.