Kyle B. Levine Sells 3,439 Shares of Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) Stock

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) SVP Kyle B. Levine sold 3,439 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.50, for a total transaction of $218,376.50. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 19,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,236,916.50. This trade represents a 15.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Alaska Air Group Price Performance

Alaska Air Group stock opened at $64.97 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $52.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.20, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $32.62 and a 52-week high of $65.62.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The transportation company reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.22 by $0.03. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 12.81%. The company had revenue of $3.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.83 EPS. Alaska Air Group’s revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 4.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 22.3% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,318 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $296,000 after buying an additional 1,333 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates increased its position in Alaska Air Group by 13.5% during the second quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 283,581 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $11,457,000 after purchasing an additional 33,717 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System increased its position in Alaska Air Group by 2.2% during the second quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 63,800 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,578,000 after purchasing an additional 1,400 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Alaska Air Group by 0.8% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,016,106 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $41,051,000 after purchasing an additional 8,423 shares during the period. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 5.8% in the 2nd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 8,063 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $326,000 after purchasing an additional 439 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.90% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on ALK shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. TD Cowen raised their target price on Alaska Air Group from $68.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Melius Research raised Alaska Air Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $56.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, October 28th. Barclays raised their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $55.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their target price on Alaska Air Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $65.86.

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.