Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) Short Interest Down 7.7% in January

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,970,000 shares, a decrease of 7.7% from the January 15th total of 6,470,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,720,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.2 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alaska Air Group

In related news, CEO Joseph A. Sprague sold 2,325 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.38, for a total value of $149,683.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 19,340 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,245,109.20. The trade was a 10.73 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Shane R. Tackett sold 22,893 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,414,061.02. This represents a 41.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 160,441 shares of company stock worth $11,247,722 in the last quarter. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ALK. Avior Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Alaska Air Group by 44.8% in the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 588 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares during the period. Pacific Center for Financial Services purchased a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group in the third quarter worth $45,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 86.0% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,025 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 474 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new position in Alaska Air Group during the third quarter valued at $52,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the 4th quarter valued at $52,000. 81.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on ALK. Barclays lifted their target price on Alaska Air Group from $55.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $63.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Susquehanna raised shares of Alaska Air Group from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and set a $95.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.86.

Alaska Air Group Stock Up 4.3 %

Alaska Air Group stock traded up $3.11 on Monday, hitting $75.65. 2,296,571 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,799,872. Alaska Air Group has a 1 year low of $32.62 and a 1 year high of $76.45. The firm has a market cap of $9.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.55. 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 business’s fifty day simple moving average is $68.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $52.43.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.52. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 14.66%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current year.

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.