Primecap Management Co. CA Has $150.91 Million Position in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK)

Primecap Management Co. CA reduced its holdings in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) by 0.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 3,862,547 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 17,700 shares during the quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA’s holdings in Alaska Air Group were worth $150,910,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ALK. Boston Partners grew its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 64.6% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,811,191 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $148,861,000 after purchasing an additional 1,495,311 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 13.8% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,439,909 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $212,543,000 after purchasing an additional 660,455 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 4,198.3% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 571,589 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $22,332,000 after purchasing an additional 558,291 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 18.5% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,447,347 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $127,828,000 after purchasing an additional 537,147 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 319.5% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 674,055 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $26,335,000 after purchasing an additional 513,373 shares during the last quarter. 81.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alaska Air Group Price Performance

NYSE ALK traded up $0.35 during trading on Friday, reaching $42.70. 1,018,356 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,506,027. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.65. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $42.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $39.06. The company has a market cap of $5.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.83, a P/E/G ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.60. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $30.75 and a 1-year high of $57.18.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The transportation company reported ($0.92) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.09) by $0.17. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 2.34% and a return on equity of 13.54%. The company had revenue of $2.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.18 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.62) earnings per share. Alaska Air Group’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 4.68 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 6,500 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.36, for a total value of $249,340.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 26,048 shares in the company, valued at $999,201.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ALK has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Alaska Air Group from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Alaska Air Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $44.00 to $51.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Alaska Air Group from $49.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. UBS Group started coverage on Alaska Air Group in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $54.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Alaska Air Group from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $55.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Alaska Air Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $56.60.

Alaska Air Group 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.