Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Price Target Raised to $80.00

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) had its price objective upped by investment analysts at Bank of America from $70.00 to $80.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the transportation company’s stock. Bank of America‘s target price would indicate a potential upside of 18.58% from the stock’s current price.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Barclays boosted their price objective 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. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Melius Research raised shares of Alaska Air Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $56.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Susquehanna raised shares of Alaska Air Group from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and set a $95.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.57.

Alaska Air Group Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of Alaska Air Group stock opened at $67.46 on Friday. Alaska Air Group has a fifty-two week low of $32.62 and a fifty-two week high of $69.10. The business’s fifty day moving average is $59.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $47.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The firm has a market cap of $8.56 billion, a PE ratio of 27.20, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.54.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The transportation company reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.22 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $3.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3 billion. Alaska Air Group had a return on equity of 12.81% and a net margin of 2.99%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.83 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Alaska Air Group will post 4.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alaska Air Group

In related news, VP Emily Halverson sold 1,329 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.41, for a total value of $85,600.89. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 7,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $460,531.50. The trade was a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Andrea L. Schneider sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.89, for a total value of $51,112.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 20,286 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,296,072.54. This represents a 3.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 34,473 shares of company stock worth $2,198,342 in the last 90 days. 0.92% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in Alaska Air Group by 8.0% during the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,969,295 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $119,960,000 after purchasing an additional 220,030 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,061,596 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $93,229,000 after buying an additional 78,186 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Alaska Air Group by 0.4% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,593,756 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $72,054,000 after acquiring an additional 6,977 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 45.1% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,422,247 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $64,300,000 after acquiring an additional 442,331 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $82,459,000. 81.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.