Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) Stock Holdings Boosted by swisspartners Advisors Ltd

swisspartners Advisors Ltd grew its stake in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 140,529 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,210 shares during the quarter. Alaska Air Group makes up approximately 4.9% of swisspartners Advisors Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. swisspartners Advisors Ltd’s holdings in Alaska Air Group were worth $6,353,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group in the second quarter worth about $28,000. Pacifica Partners Inc. lifted its stake in Alaska Air Group by 952.4% in the 3rd quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 1,105 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $69,000. Halpern Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $81,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 31.7% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,602 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $105,000 after acquiring an additional 626 shares during the period. 81.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

NYSE:ALK traded up $1.32 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $49.23. 3,632,444 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,278,467. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $31.44 and a 52 week high of $50.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.63, a P/E/G ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.60. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $42.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $40.86.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The transportation company reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.22 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3 billion. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 2.14% and a return on equity of 11.85%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.83 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ALK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Melius Research raised shares of Alaska Air Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $56.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 28th. TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $52.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $51.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Melius raised 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 note on Monday, October 28th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alaska Air Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $54.17.

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.