Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Shares Up 8.4% – Here’s What Happened

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) shares were up 8.4% during trading on Monday. The stock traded as high as $38.85 and last traded at $38.7090. 729,460 shares were traded during mid-day 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 Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings lowered Alaska Air Group from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $51.00 target price (down from $54.00) on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research report on Friday, September 25th. Barclays set a $52.00 price target on shares of Alaska Air Group and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $92.00 to $74.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $52.62.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $4.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.13 and a beta of 1.33. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $39.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $44.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Benito Minicucci bought 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The stock was bought at an average price of $40.06 per share, for a total transaction of $1,001,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 256,582 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,278,674.92. This trade represents a 10.80% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALK. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 7.4% in the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 29,453 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,140,000 after acquiring an additional 2,042 shares in the last quarter. Privium Fund Management UK Ltd raised its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 10.9% in the 3rd quarter. Privium Fund Management UK Ltd now owns 580,865 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $23,194,000 after acquiring an additional 57,180 shares in the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. bought a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $320,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 87.2% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 40,556 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,570,000 after acquiring an additional 18,886 shares in the last quarter. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new stake in Alaska Air Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $766,000. Institutional investors own 81.90% of the company’s stock.

About Alaska Air Group

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.