Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Stock Price Up 8.4% – What’s Next?

Shares of Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) traded up 8.4% during trading on Monday. The company traded as high as $38.85 and last traded at $38.7090. Approximately 729,460 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 3,647,817 shares. The stock had previously closed at $35.71.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ALK has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Alaska Air Group from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Alaska Air Group from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Barclays set a $52.00 price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $41.00 target price on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on Alaska Air Group from $51.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Alaska Air Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $52.38.

Alaska Air Group Stock Down 3.6%

The company has a market cap of $4.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.52 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $38.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $44.02.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The transportation company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by ($0.03). Alaska Air Group had a negative return on equity of 5.42% and a negative net margin of 2.58%. The company had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.31 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.05 earnings per share. Alaska Air Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post -4.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Benito Minicucci purchased 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $40.06 per share, for a total transaction of $1,001,500.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 256,582 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,278,674.92. The trade was a 10.80% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Alaska Air Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ALK. Compound Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in Alaska Air Group by 323.5% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 775 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 592 shares during the period. Heritage Family Offices LLP bought a new stake in Alaska Air Group during the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC boosted its position in Alaska Air Group by 963.3% during the second quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 840 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 761 shares during the period. Finally, Mosley Wealth Management grew its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 1,475.0% during the third quarter. Mosley Wealth Management now owns 945 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 885 shares during the last quarter. 81.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alaska Air Group Company Profile

Alaska Air Group, Inc is an airline holding company headquartered in Seattle, Washington. Its principal subsidiaries include Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines, which operate under separate brands while serving passengers throughout North America, the Pacific and other international markets.

Alaska Airlines provides scheduled passenger and air cargo services across the United States, Canada, Mexico, Costa Rica and the Bahamas, with a strong presence on the U.S. West Coast and in Alaska.