Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Shares Gap Down - Time to Sell?

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) shares gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $49.64, but opened at $47.01. Alaska Air Group shares last traded at $47.44, with a volume of 803,192 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on ALK. Bank of America decreased their target price on 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target 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. UBS Group downgraded 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 note on Monday, April 7th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $54.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $66.83.

Alaska Air Group Price Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average of $48.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $58.32. The firm has a market cap of $5.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.98, a PEG ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported ($0.77) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.72) by ($0.05). Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 14.66%. The business had revenue of $3.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.92) EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 40.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Alaska Air Group

In other Alaska Air Group news, VP Emily Halverson sold 2,946 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.34, for a total transaction of $151,247.64. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 8,253 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $423,709.02. This represents a 26.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 7,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.51, for a total transaction of $401,325.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 26,530 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,419,620.30. The trade was a 22.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 10,479 shares of company stock valued at $554,228 in the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ALK. FMR LLC grew its position in Alaska Air Group by 328.7% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,649,388 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $301,048,000 after purchasing an additional 3,564,749 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 249.1% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,638,464 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $129,865,000 after buying an additional 1,882,598 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 134.0% during the fourth quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,134,221 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $138,191,000 after buying an additional 1,222,277 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 4,615.3% during 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 buying an additional 923,064 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Candlestick Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Alaska Air Group during the fourth quarter valued at $51,306,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.90% of the company's stock.

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.