Short Interest in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) Rises By 47.9%

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 8,610,000 shares, a growth of 47.9% from the May 31st total of 5,820,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,950,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.4 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 215.8% in the 4th quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 761 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 520 shares in the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 255.5% in the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 775 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 557 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. LifeSteps Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the 1st quarter valued at $65,000. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 28.4% during the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,688 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 373 shares during the period. 81.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

NYSE:ALK traded down $0.77 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $39.63. The company had a trading volume of 724,100 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,169,809. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.63. The firm has a market cap of $5.03 billion, a PE ratio of 21.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 1.60. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $42.41 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.94. Alaska Air Group has a 1-year low of $30.75 and a 1-year high of $57.18.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The transportation company reported ($0.92) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.09) by $0.17. Alaska Air Group had a return on equity of 13.54% and a net margin of 2.34%. The business had revenue of $2.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.62) EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group will post 4.71 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group assumed coverage on Alaska Air Group in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $54.00 target price for the company. Wolfe Research upgraded Alaska Air Group from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $55.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Alaska Air Group from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. StockNews.com upgraded Alaska Air Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their target price on Alaska Air Group from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alaska Air Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $56.60.

About Alaska Air Group

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.