Short Interest in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) Decreases By 32.6%

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 6,580,000 shares, a decline of 32.6% from the December 15th total of 9,760,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,520,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.6 days.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Emily Halverson sold 1,329 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.41, for a total transaction of $85,600.89. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 7,150 shares in the company, valued at approximately $460,531.50. This represents a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Muehlen Constance E. Von sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.09, for a total value of $252,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 12,162 shares in the company, valued at approximately $767,300.58. This represents a 24.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 34,473 shares of company stock valued at $2,198,342. 0.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. FMR LLC lifted its position in Alaska Air Group by 32.4% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,084,639 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $49,037,000 after purchasing an additional 265,343 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 54.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 57,577 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,591,000 after acquiring an additional 20,347 shares during the last quarter. Entropy Technologies LP grew its position in Alaska Air Group by 358.9% in the third quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 27,428 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,240,000 after acquiring an additional 21,451 shares in the last quarter. Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in Alaska Air Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $772,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 156.3% in the 3rd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 83,777 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,788,000 after purchasing an additional 51,096 shares during the last quarter. 81.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alaska Air Group Price Performance

NYSE ALK traded down $0.78 on Wednesday, reaching $66.66. The company had a trading volume of 2,531,117 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,725,969. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.46 billion, a PE ratio of 26.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.54. Alaska Air Group has a 12 month low of $32.62 and a 12 month high of $69.10. 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’s 50 day moving average price is $59.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $46.81.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The transportation company reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.22 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.07 billion for 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 business’s revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.83 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Alaska Air Group will post 4.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on ALK shares. Melius upgraded 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. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Alaska Air Group from $58.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $68.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.79.

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.