Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Upgraded to Positive at Susquehanna

Susquehanna upgraded shares of Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) from a neutral rating to a positive rating in a report published on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has $95.00 price target on the transportation company’s stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $72.00 price target on shares of Alaska Air Group in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Melius Research raised shares of Alaska Air Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $56.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Alaska Air Group from $58.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.14.

Alaska Air Group Trading Up 1.6 %

NYSE ALK opened at $65.41 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $8.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.38, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.54. Alaska Air Group has a one year low of $32.62 and a one year high of $67.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.60. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $57.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $45.90.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The transportation company reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.22 by $0.03. Alaska Air Group had a return on equity of 12.81% and a net margin of 2.99%. The business had revenue of $3.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.83 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Alaska Air Group will post 4.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Andrea L. Schneider sold 800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.89, for a total value of $51,112.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 20,286 shares in the company, valued at $1,296,072.54. The trade was a 3.79 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 13,880 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.01, for a total value of $888,458.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,638 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,321,038.38. This represents a 40.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 34,473 shares of company stock valued at $2,198,342. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in Alaska Air Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Pacific Center for Financial Services acquired a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group in the 3rd quarter worth $45,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 86.0% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,025 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 474 shares in the last quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 952.4% during the third quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 1,105 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group during the third quarter worth about $52,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.90% of the company’s stock.

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.