Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Price Target Raised to $70.00

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) had its price objective upped by analysts at Bank of America from $62.00 to $70.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the transportation company’s stock. Bank of America‘s target price would indicate a potential upside of 34.65% from the company’s current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Susquehanna set a $58.00 price target on shares of Alaska Air Group and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. UBS Group set a $77.00 price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Alaska Air Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $69.73.

Alaska Air Group Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of ALK stock opened at $51.99 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.92, a P/E/G ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.22. Alaska Air Group has a 12-month low of $37.63 and a 12-month high of $78.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $45.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $50.84.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.06). Alaska Air Group had a return on equity of 8.93% and a net margin of 1.06%.The firm had revenue of $3.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.75 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.25 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC bought a new position in Alaska Air Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. MAI Capital Management lifted its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 80.5% in the 2nd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 628 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 280 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 43.2% in the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 838 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Country Trust Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group during the third quarter worth $45,000. 81.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.