Insider Selling: Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) SVP Sells 1,830 Shares of Stock

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) SVP Andrea L. Schneider sold 1,830 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.32, for a total transaction of $134,175.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 20,286 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,487,369.52. The trade was a 8.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Alaska Air Group Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE ALK opened at $73.12 on Monday. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $32.62 and a 1 year high of $74.70. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $63.72 and its 200-day moving average is $49.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.28 billion, a PE ratio of 23.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.54.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.52. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 14.66%. Equities analysts expect that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Plan Group Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Plan Group Financial LLC now owns 8,136 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $527,000 after buying an additional 257 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 627,685 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $40,643,000 after purchasing an additional 20,796 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP increased its stake in Alaska Air Group by 110.2% in the fourth quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP now owns 3,118 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $202,000 after purchasing an additional 1,635 shares in the last quarter. Nkcfo LLC acquired a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter worth $1,101,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 41.0% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 4,076 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $275,000 after purchasing an additional 1,186 shares in the last quarter. 81.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ALK has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup increased their price target on Alaska Air Group from $63.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Melius upgraded Alaska Air Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $56.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Alaska Air Group from $58.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Alaska Air Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $74.86.

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.