Susquehanna Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Stock Price

Key Points

• Susquehanna cut Alaska Air Group’s price target from $55 to $50 while maintaining a “positive” rating, implying roughly 25% upside from the $39.91 share price.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly favorable, with 10 Buy ratings, one Hold, and two Sell ratings; the consensus target is $57.62, or above Susquehanna’s revised forecast.
• Alaska Air Group reported a quarterly loss of $0.92 per share, though it beat expectations, while revenue rose 9.7% year over year to $4.07 billion. CEO Benito Minicucci also bought 25,000 shares, signaling insider confidence.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) had its target price decreased by research analysts at Susquehanna from $55.00 to $50.00 in a report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "positive" rating on the transportation company's stock. Susquehanna's price objective points to a potential upside of 25.29% from the company's current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $69.00 price objective (up from $58.00) on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Alaska Air Group in a report on Friday, September 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $46.00 target price on Alaska Air Group in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Alaska Air Group from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $57.62.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

Shares of ALK stock opened at $39.91 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $4.45 billion, a PE ratio of -25.42 and a beta of 1.33. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $42.93 and a 200-day moving average of $43.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.51. Alaska Air Group has a one year low of $33.03 and a one year high of $60.63.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The transportation company reported ($0.92) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.99) by $0.07. Alaska Air Group had a negative net margin of 1.19% and a negative return on equity of 3.11%. The business had revenue of $4.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.42 EPS. Alaska Air Group's quarterly revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Alaska Air Group has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.000-1.000 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Alaska Air Group will post -2.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Alaska Air Group news, CEO Benito Minicucci purchased 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $40.06 per share, with a total value of $1,001,500.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 256,582 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,278,674.92. The trade was a 10.80% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Andrew Harrison sold 5,300 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.67, for a total transaction of $263,251.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 25,528 shares in the company, valued at $1,267,975.76. This trade represents a 17.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Byrne Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Alaska Air Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $109,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 10.1% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,727 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $351,000 after buying an additional 617 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. bought a new stake in Alaska Air Group during the second quarter worth $247,000. Capstone Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Alaska Air Group by 4.6% in the second quarter. Capstone Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 30,206 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,577,000 after acquiring an additional 1,339 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Engineers Gate Manager LP grew its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 1,445.3% in the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 87,187 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $4,551,000 after acquiring an additional 81,545 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.90% of the company's stock.

Alaska Air Group Company Profile

Alaska Air Group, Inc is an airline holding company headquartered in Seattle, Washington. Its principal subsidiaries are Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines, which provide scheduled passenger and cargo air transportation, as well as Horizon Air, a regional airline that operates flights for Alaska Airlines. The group also owns McGee Air Services, an aviation services provider.

Alaska Airlines serves destinations across Alaska, the contiguous United States, Canada, Mexico, and other locations in North America.

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