Castleark Management LLC Makes New Investment in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK)

Castleark Management LLC purchased a new position in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 76,620 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $4,961,000. Castleark Management LLC owned 0.06% of Alaska Air Group at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Alaska Air Group by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,651,876 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $883,959,000 after buying an additional 56,409 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Alaska Air Group by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,225,054 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $403,076,000 after buying an additional 56,740 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake 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 buying an additional 3,564,749 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its stake in Alaska Air Group by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,460,959 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $224,121,000 after buying an additional 222,780 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in Alaska Air Group by 134.0% during the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,134,221 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $138,191,000 after buying an additional 1,222,277 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.90% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Alaska Air Group

In related news, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 7,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.51, for a total value of $401,325.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,530 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,419,620.30. This represents a 22.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. 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 note on Friday, April 25th. Barclays dropped their price target on Alaska Air Group from $62.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Bank of America dropped their price target on 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. UBS Group lowered Alaska Air Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $75.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their price target on Alaska Air Group from $95.00 to $55.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $66.83.

Alaska Air Group Trading Up 1.2%

ALK traded up $0.62 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $50.73. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,243,062 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,787,765. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $32.62 and a fifty-two week high of $78.08. The stock has a market cap of $6.23 billion, a PE ratio of 16.63, a P/E/G ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.41. The business's 50-day moving average is $48.52 and its 200-day moving average is $58.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.61 and a quick ratio of 0.58.

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 analysts' consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.92) earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 40.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.