Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Given New $96.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. has increased its price target for Alaska Air Group from $73.00 to $96.00, indicating a potential upside of 50.45% from the stock's previous close.
• The company reported strong quarterly earnings, with earnings per share of $1.78 beating the consensus estimate, and revenue increased by 27.9% year-over-year.
• Thirteen analysts have rated Alaska Air Group with a Buy rating, contributing to a consensus target price of $71.15, reflecting strong market confidence in the company's growth.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) had its target price upped by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $73.00 to $96.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the transportation company's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price target would suggest a potential upside of 50.45% from the company's previous close.

ALK has been the topic of several other reports. Barclays raised their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Susquehanna lifted their price target on Alaska Air Group from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Alaska Air Group from $49.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded Alaska Air Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $70.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 25th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $71.15.

Alaska Air Group Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of ALK stock opened at $63.81 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $56.07 and a 200 day moving average of $52.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market cap of $7.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.94, a P/E/G ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.45. Alaska Air Group has a twelve month low of $38.97 and a twelve month high of $78.08.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.56 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $3.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.65 billion. Alaska Air Group had a return on equity of 12.62% and a net margin of 2.33%.Alaska Air Group's quarterly revenue was up 27.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.55 earnings per share. Alaska Air Group has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 1.000-1.400 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 3.250- EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Alaska Air Group will post 6.03 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 7,600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.22, for a total value of $404,472.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 18,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,007,454.60. This represents a 28.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Shane R. Tackett sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.06, for a total value of $285,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 43,335 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,472,695.10. This trade represents a 10.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 18,514 shares of company stock worth $1,031,306 in the last quarter. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Alaska Air Group

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Alaska Air Group by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,266,619 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $161,632,000 after acquiring an additional 42,454 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in Alaska Air Group by 249.1% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,638,464 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $129,865,000 after acquiring an additional 1,882,598 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Alaska Air Group by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,215,697 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $109,657,000 after acquiring an additional 77,531 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in Alaska Air Group by 20.2% during the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,910,364 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $94,028,000 after acquiring an additional 321,505 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Alaska Air Group by 10.1% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,456,129 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $71,809,000 after acquiring an additional 134,141 shares during the period. 81.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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