Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Shares Gap Up - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Alaska Air shares gapped up pre-market from $36.93 to an open of $41.65 and were last around $40.85, up about 10.4% on roughly 3.09 million shares traded.
• Analysts hold a consensus Moderate Buy with an average price target of $63.67, though individual ratings range from buy/overweight/outperform to a recent sell downgrade by Wall Street Zen.
• The company beat Q4 EPS estimates ($0.43 vs. $0.11) but gave cautious Q1 2026 guidance (-$1.50 to -$0.50) and FY 2026 guidance of $3.50–$6.50, and insiders have sold about 56,945 shares (~$3.2M) in the past 90 days.

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $36.93, but opened at $41.65. Alaska Air Group shares last traded at $40.8460, with a volume of 3,089,001 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ALK. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $63.00 price target on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research note on Friday, January 30th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $63.00 to $54.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $70.00 price target (up from $60.00) on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $71.00 price target on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Alaska Air Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $63.67.

Alaska Air Group Trading Up 10.4%

The company has a market capitalization of $4.62 billion, a PE ratio of 46.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.27. The company's fifty day moving average is $46.77 and its 200-day moving average is $47.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.50 and a quick ratio of 0.46.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $3.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.64 billion. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 0.70% and a return on equity of 7.22%. Alaska Air Group's revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.97 earnings per share. Alaska Air Group has set its Q1 2026 guidance at -1.500--0.500 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 3.500-6.500 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Alaska Air Group

In related news, EVP Kyle B. Levine sold 2,945 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.02, for a total transaction of $176,758.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 20,977 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,259,039.54. This trade represents a 12.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 14,500 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.81, for a total transaction of $794,745.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 20,195 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,106,887.95. The trade was a 41.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 56,945 shares of company stock valued at $3,204,569 over the last ninety days. 0.92% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,059,404 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $556,288,000 after purchasing an additional 110,628 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 0.9% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,273,084 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $312,280,000 after purchasing an additional 56,225 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 86.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 3,175,350 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $159,720,000 after purchasing an additional 1,475,350 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in Alaska Air Group by 24.8% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,962,620 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $149,020,000 after purchasing an additional 588,119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Alaska Air Group by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,149,777 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $108,166,000 after purchasing an additional 35,352 shares in the last quarter. 81.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Alaska Air Group

Alaska Air Group is a publicly traded holding company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, that operates two main airlines—Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air. Through these carriers, the company offers scheduled passenger and cargo services across a network spanning the United States, Canada and Mexico. Its core business activities include domestic and international air transportation, loyalty program management under the Mileage Plan brand, and ancillary revenue streams such as baggage fees, in-flight sales and code-share partnerships with other global airlines.

The roots of Alaska Air Group trace back to the foundation of its flagship carrier, Alaska Airlines, in 1932.

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