Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) have earned a consensus rating of “Buy” from the thirteen analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $77.00.

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Alaska Air Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $85.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th.

Insider Activity

In other Alaska Air Group news, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 91,745 shares of the 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,638 shares in the company, valued at $1,468,187.32. This represents a 81.64 % decrease in their position. The transaction 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 business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.89, for a total transaction of $51,112.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 20,286 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,296,072.54. This trade represents a 3.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 189,198 shares of company stock valued at $13,415,604. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ALK. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 328.7% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,649,388 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $301,048,000 after purchasing an additional 3,564,749 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $82,459,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 134.0% in the fourth quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,134,221 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $138,191,000 after acquiring an additional 1,222,277 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 4,615.3% in the fourth quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 943,064 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $61,063,000 after acquiring an additional 923,064 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Candlestick Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Alaska Air Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $51,306,000. 81.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alaska Air Group Trading Down 6.9 %

Shares of ALK opened at $65.07 on Friday. Alaska Air Group has a 52-week low of $32.62 and a 52-week high of $78.08. The stock has a market cap of $8.01 billion, a PE ratio of 21.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.55. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $70.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $55.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.97 earnings per share (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%. Research analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.