Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the fourteen analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has given a hold recommendation and eleven have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $67.1154.

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on ALK shares. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $62.00 target price (up from $56.00) on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Citigroup restated a “sell” rating and issued a $47.00 price target (up from $32.00) on shares of Alaska Air Group in a report on Friday, June 26th. Zacks Research raised Alaska Air Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $55.00 to $62.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Alaska Air Group from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

Shares of ALK opened at $45.50 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $5.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 85.84 and a beta of 1.28. Alaska Air Group has a twelve month low of $33.03 and a twelve month high of $65.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.43. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $45.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.00.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 20th. The transportation company reported ($1.68) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.61) by ($0.07). Alaska Air Group had a return on equity of 4.96% and a net margin of 0.51%.The company had revenue of $3.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.31 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.77) EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group will post -0.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Alaska Air Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. First Command Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in Alaska Air Group by 242.5% in the 4th quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. now owns 685 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 485 shares during the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC lifted its position in Alaska Air Group by 963.3% during the 2nd quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 840 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 761 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Alaska Air Group by 30.4% during the 4th quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 910 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 32.5% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,570 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 385 shares during the last quarter. 81.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Alaska Air Group

Alaska Air Group is a publicly traded holding company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, that operates two main airlines—Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air. Through these carriers, the company offers scheduled passenger and cargo services across a network spanning the United States, Canada and Mexico. Its core business activities include domestic and international air transportation, loyalty program management under the Mileage Plan brand, and ancillary revenue streams such as baggage fees, in-flight sales and code-share partnerships with other global airlines.

The roots of Alaska Air Group trace back to the foundation of its flagship carrier, Alaska Airlines, in 1932.