Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) Shares Acquired by Point72 Asset Management L.P.

Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK - Free Report) by 134.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,134,221 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 1,222,277 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. owned approximately 1.68% of Alaska Air Group worth $138,191,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ALK. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 328.7% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,649,388 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $301,048,000 after acquiring an additional 3,564,749 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter valued at $82,459,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 4,615.3% in the fourth quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 943,064 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $61,063,000 after acquiring an additional 923,064 shares during the period. Candlestick Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter valued at $51,306,000. Finally, Interval Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group in the 4th quarter worth about $50,507,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.90% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Alaska Air Group news, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 6,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.28, for a total value of $503,448.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 34,030 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,595,808.40. This represents a 16.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Muehlen Constance E. Von sold 22,157 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.12, for a total value of $1,664,433.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 20,026 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,504,353.12. The trade was a 52.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 28,790 shares of company stock valued at $2,169,537. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $54.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $62.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Susquehanna cut their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $95.00 to $55.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Alaska Air Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $65.92.

Alaska Air Group Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:ALK traded up $0.73 during trading on Friday, reaching $53.71. 2,492,559 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,758,775. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.61. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $32.62 and a 12-month high of $78.08. The firm has a market cap of $6.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.41. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $48.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $58.36.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported ($0.77) earnings per share (EPS) 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 analysts' expectations of $3.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.92) EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 40.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alaska Air Group 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.