Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) Shares Sold by Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH

Key Points

• Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH reduced its stake in Alaska Air Group by 47.9%, leaving it with a valuation of $1.56 million.
• Other institutional investors significantly increased their holdings in Alaska Air Group, with FMR LLC and Adage Capital Partners raising their shares by over 328% and 4,615%, respectively.
• Alaska Air Group's stock recently traded down 2.9% to $51.40, despite reporting a year-over-year revenue increase of 27.9% during its last earnings report.

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH decreased its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK - Free Report) by 47.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 31,704 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 29,120 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH's holdings in Alaska Air Group were worth $1,560,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALK. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board bought a new position in Alaska Air Group in the first quarter valued at about $1,235,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 416.3% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 30,499 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,501,000 after buying an additional 24,592 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Alaska Air Group by 2.9% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 25,160 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,238,000 after buying an additional 713 shares during the period. KBC Group NV bought a new position in Alaska Air Group in the first quarter worth approximately $76,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 8.9% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 971,938 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $47,839,000 after purchasing an additional 79,099 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on ALK. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Alaska Air Group from $54.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Susquehanna dropped their price target on shares of 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. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $49.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Alaska Air Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $67.42.

Alaska Air Group Stock Up 2.0%

ALK traded up $1.04 during trading on Monday, hitting $52.41. The stock had a trading volume of 932,729 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,238,646. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $32.62 and a twelve month high of $78.08. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $50.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $55.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.52. The company has a market capitalization of $6.43 billion, a PE ratio of 21.33, a PEG ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.45.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.56 by $0.22. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 2.33% and a return on equity of 12.62%. The business had revenue of $3.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.65 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.55 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 27.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Alaska Air Group

In related news, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 7,600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.22, for a total transaction of $404,472.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 18,930 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,007,454.60. This trade represents a 28.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Emily Halverson sold 2,946 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.34, for a total value of $151,247.64. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 8,253 shares in the company, valued at $423,709.02. This represents a 26.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 18,079 shares of company stock worth $958,700. 0.92% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.