Man Group plc Has $34.88 Million Stock Holdings in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK)

Man Group plc grew its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK - Free Report) by 48.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 538,647 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 175,246 shares during the quarter. Man Group plc owned 0.42% of Alaska Air Group worth $34,877,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP boosted its stake in Alaska Air Group by 152.0% during the 4th quarter. Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP now owns 20,895 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,353,000 after acquiring an additional 12,603 shares during the last quarter. Moore Capital Management LP bought a new position in Alaska Air Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,426,000. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,238,000. Interval Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter worth about $50,507,000. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter worth about $224,000. 81.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Alaska Air Group news, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 6,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.28, for a total transaction of $503,448.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 34,030 shares in the company, valued at $2,595,808.40. This trade represents a 16.24% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Muehlen Constance E. Von sold 22,157 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.12, for a total value of $1,664,433.84. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 20,026 shares in the company, valued at $1,504,353.12. The trade was a 52.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 28,790 shares of company stock valued at $2,169,537. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on ALK. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $62.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. UBS Group lowered shares of Alaska Air Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $75.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Susquehanna dropped their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $95.00 to $55.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $54.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Alaska Air Group presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $66.83.

Alaska Air Group Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of ALK traded down $0.12 on Monday, hitting $53.53. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,567,954 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,758,012. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $48.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $58.43. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $32.62 and a fifty-two week high of $78.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.55, a P/E/G ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.41.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported ($0.77) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.72) by ($0.05). Alaska Air Group had a return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 3.37%. The firm had revenue of $3.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.19 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.92) EPS. The company's revenue was up 40.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 EPS for the current year.

About Alaska Air Group

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.