EHP Funds Inc. Invests $1.07 Million in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK)

EHP Funds Inc. bought a new position in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 16,500 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $1,068,000. Alaska Air Group makes up about 1.0% of EHP Funds Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest position.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ALK. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 328.7% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,649,388 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $301,048,000 after purchasing an additional 3,564,749 shares in the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter worth about $82,459,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 4,615.3% in the fourth quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 943,064 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $61,063,000 after buying an additional 923,064 shares during the period. Candlestick Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Alaska Air Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $51,306,000. Finally, Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 421.9% during the 4th quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 704,575 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $45,621,000 after acquiring an additional 569,584 shares during the period. 81.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on ALK. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. UBS Group downgraded shares of Alaska Air Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $75.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $83.00 to $81.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $54.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $65.92.

Alaska Air Group Stock Up 2.5%

Shares of ALK stock traded up $1.29 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $53.32. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,496,292 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,726,445. The stock has a market cap of $6.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.47, a PEG ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.61. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $32.62 and a 52-week high of $78.08. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $49.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.19.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported ($0.77) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.72) by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $3.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.19 billion. Alaska Air Group had a return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 3.37%. Alaska Air Group's quarterly revenue was up 40.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.92) earnings per share. Research analysts predict 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 Andrew R. Harrison sold 6,600 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.28, for a total transaction of $503,448.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 34,030 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,595,808.40. The trade was a 16.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Muehlen Constance E. Von sold 22,157 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.12, for a total value of $1,664,433.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 20,026 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,504,353.12. The trade was a 52.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 28,790 shares of company stock worth $2,169,537 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Alaska Air Group Profile

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.