Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Stock Price Target Lowered at UBS Group

Key Points

• UBS lowered Alaska Air Group’s price target from $51 to $48 while maintaining a “buy” rating, implying 25.62% upside from the stock’s $38.21 trading price.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: ten analysts rate the stock a Buy and three rate it a Sell, resulting in a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average target price of $52.38.
• Alaska Air Group’s latest quarterly EPS of $0.36 missed estimates of $0.39, while revenue matched expectations at $4.31 billion; CEO Benito Minicucci separately purchased 25,000 shares worth about $1 million.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) had its target price decreased by UBS Group from $51.00 to $48.00 in a research note issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "buy" rating on the transportation company's stock. UBS Group's price objective points to a potential upside of 25.62% from the stock's current price.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on ALK. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Alaska Air Group from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $41.00 price objective on Alaska Air Group in a research note on Thursday. Zacks Research cut shares of Alaska Air Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $41.00 price target (down from $44.00) on shares of Alaska Air Group in a report on Thursday. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Alaska Air Group from a "sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Alaska Air Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $52.38.

Alaska Air Group Price Performance

ALK stock traded up $2.50 during trading on Monday, reaching $38.21. 4,508,493 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,667,170. Alaska Air Group has a 52-week low of $32.33 and a 52-week high of $60.63. The company has a market cap of $4.26 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.89 and a beta of 1.33. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $39.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.46.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The transportation company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.39 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.31 billion. Alaska Air Group had a negative return on equity of 5.42% and a negative net margin of 2.58%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.05 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Alaska Air Group will post -4.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Benito Minicucci bought 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $40.06 per share, for a total transaction of $1,001,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 256,582 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,278,674.92. This trade represents a 10.80% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 23,499 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $864,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Aspire Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Alaska Air Group by 4.2% during the second quarter. Aspire Capital Advisors LLC now owns 9,397 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $491,000 after buying an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 32.5% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,570 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 385 shares during the period. Waverly Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 7.4% during the second quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 8,145 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $425,000 after acquiring an additional 558 shares during the period. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 323.5% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 775 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 592 shares during the period. 81.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Alaska Air Group

Alaska Air Group, Inc is an airline holding company headquartered in Seattle, Washington. Its principal subsidiaries include Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines, which operate under separate brands while serving passengers throughout North America, the Pacific and other international markets.

Alaska Airlines provides scheduled passenger and air cargo services across the United States, Canada, Mexico, Costa Rica and the Bahamas, with a strong presence on the U.S. West Coast and in Alaska.

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