Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The transportation company reported ($0.92) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.09) by $0.17, RTT News reports. The business had revenue of $2.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.18 billion. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 2.25% and a return on equity of 14.72%. The company’s revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.62) earnings per share.

Alaska Air Group Stock Up 4.0 %

ALK stock opened at $44.45 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The company’s 50 day moving average is $39.52 and its 200 day moving average is $37.17. The stock has a market cap of $5.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.63. Alaska Air Group has a 1-year low of $30.75 and a 1-year high of $57.18.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 6,500 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,048 shares in the company, valued at $999,201.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ALK. Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 416.4% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 568 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 458 shares during the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co grew its position in Alaska Air Group by 19.5% during the third quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 2,141 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $84,000 after acquiring an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its position in Alaska Air Group by 12.2% during the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 2,149 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $92,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC grew its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 54.1% in the fourth quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 2,452 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 861 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 19.9% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,811 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $105,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. 81.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on ALK shares. Susquehanna downgraded shares of Alaska Air Group from a “positive” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $39.00 to $40.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. Melius downgraded shares of Alaska Air Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Alaska Air Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $44.00 to $51.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $49.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Alaska Air Group in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $54.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alaska Air Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $57.69.

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.