Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Stock Rating Cut to “Strong Sell” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) from a sell rating to a strong sell rating in a report released on Monday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Alaska Air Group from $94.00 to $92.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 24th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $47.00 to $37.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 24th. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $50.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research report on Friday, September 25th. Finally, Barclays set a $52.00 price target on Alaska Air Group and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $59.15.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

Alaska Air Group stock opened at $39.26 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.37 billion, a P/E ratio of -25.00 and a beta of 1.33. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $43.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $43.24. Alaska Air Group has a 52-week low of $33.03 and a 52-week high of $60.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.51.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The transportation company reported ($0.92) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.99) by $0.07. The company had revenue of $4.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.09 billion. Alaska Air Group had a negative net margin of 1.19% and a negative return on equity of 3.11%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.42 EPS. Alaska Air Group has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.000-1.000 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Alaska Air Group will post -1.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 5,300 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.67, for a total value of $263,251.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 25,528 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,267,975.76. This trade represents a 17.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Benito Minicucci acquired 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $40.06 per share, for a total transaction of $1,001,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 256,582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,278,674.92. The trade was a 10.80% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALK. QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Alaska Air Group by 10.1% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,727 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $351,000 after purchasing an additional 617 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. bought a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $247,000. Capstone Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. Capstone Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 30,206 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,577,000 after acquiring an additional 1,339 shares during the period. Engineers Gate Manager LP increased its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 1,445.3% during the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 87,187 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $4,551,000 after acquiring an additional 81,545 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 29.9% during the 2nd quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 32,134 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,677,000 after acquiring an additional 7,391 shares during the last quarter. 81.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Alaska Air Group

Alaska Air Group, Inc is an airline holding company headquartered in Seattle, Washington. Its principal subsidiaries are Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines, which provide scheduled passenger and cargo air transportation, as well as Horizon Air, a regional airline that operates flights for Alaska Airlines. The group also owns McGee Air Services, an aviation services provider.

Alaska Airlines serves destinations across Alaska, the contiguous United States, Canada, Mexico, and other locations in North America.