Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $76.94 and last traded at $77.31, with a volume of 564074 shares. The stock had previously closed at $75.34.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $58.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Bank of America raised their target price on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Melius Research raised Alaska Air Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $56.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, October 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Susquehanna raised Alaska Air Group from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and set a $95.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $76.69.

Alaska Air Group Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $69.26 and a 200-day moving average of $53.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.94, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.55.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 3.37%. Equities analysts predict that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Alaska Air Group

In other news, SVP Andrea L. Schneider sold 3,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.50, for a total transaction of $234,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 21,086 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,338,961. The trade was a 14.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Shane R. Tackett sold 22,893 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.74, for a total value of $1,733,915.82. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 31,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,414,061.02. The trade was a 41.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 182,598 shares of company stock worth $12,912,156. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ALK. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 328.7% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,649,388 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $301,048,000 after purchasing an additional 3,564,749 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $82,459,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 134.0% in the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,134,221 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $138,191,000 after purchasing an additional 1,222,277 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 4,615.3% in the 4th quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 943,064 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $61,063,000 after purchasing an additional 923,064 shares during the period. Finally, Candlestick Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $51,306,000. 81.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.