18,000 Shares in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) Purchased by Polianta Ltd

Polianta Ltd bought a new position in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 18,000 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $885,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. FMR LLC increased its position 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 during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 134.0% during the fourth quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,134,221 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $138,191,000 after buying an additional 1,222,277 shares during the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 923,064 shares during the period. Candlestick Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group during the 4th quarter worth $51,306,000. Finally, Interval Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group during the 4th quarter worth $50,507,000. Institutional investors own 81.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on ALK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. TD Cowen upped their price target on Alaska Air Group from $54.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Barclays cut their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $62.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, UBS Group cut shares of Alaska Air Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $75.00 to $54.00 in a research note on Monday, April 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Alaska Air Group has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $66.83.

Alaska Air Group Price Performance

Shares of ALK stock traded down $2.24 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $47.40. The company had a trading volume of 3,046,461 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,847,220. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.61 and a quick ratio of 0.58. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $48.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $58.28. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $32.62 and a 52-week high of $78.08. The company has a market capitalization of $5.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.44.

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). Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 14.66%. The company had revenue of $3.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.19 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.92) EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 40.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Alaska Air Group news, VP Emily Halverson sold 2,946 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.34, for a total value of $151,247.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 8,253 shares of the company's stock, valued at $423,709.02. This trade represents a 26.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 7,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.51, for a total transaction of $401,325.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,530 shares in the company, valued at $1,419,620.30. This represents a 22.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 10,479 shares of company stock valued at $554,228 in the last quarter. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Alaska Air Group Company 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.