Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.17 EPS

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) released its earnings results on Thursday. The transportation company reported ($0.92) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.09) by $0.17, RTT News reports. The company had revenue of $2.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.18 billion. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 2.34% and a return on equity of 13.54%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.62) EPS.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ALK opened at $45.02 on Friday. Alaska Air Group has a 52 week low of $30.75 and a 52 week high of $57.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.07, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.63. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $39.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $37.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 6,500 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.36, for a total transaction of $249,340.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,048 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $999,201.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ALK. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its position in Alaska Air Group by 78.2% in the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 9,980 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $579,000 after buying an additional 4,379 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Alaska Air Group by 23.6% in the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 34,204 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,984,000 after buying an additional 6,520 shares during the period. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS boosted its position in Alaska Air Group by 7.1% in the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 16,847 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $977,000 after buying an additional 1,119 shares during the period. APG Asset Management N.V. purchased a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $980,000. Finally, Great West Life Assurance Co. Can boosted its position in Alaska Air Group by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 17,972 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,077,000 after buying an additional 592 shares during the period. 81.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ALK shares. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $49.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Alaska Air Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Melius downgraded shares of Alaska Air Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Alaska Air Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $44.00 to $51.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $57.85.

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.