Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Price Target Cut to $62.00 by Analysts at Barclays

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) had its price objective decreased by investment analysts at Barclays from $80.00 to $62.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the transportation company’s stock. Barclays‘s price target suggests a potential upside of 47.86% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on ALK. Susquehanna lowered their price target on Alaska Air Group from $95.00 to $55.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. UBS Group lowered Alaska Air Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $75.00 to $54.00 in a research note on Monday. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $70.15.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ALK traded down $1.94 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $41.93. 2,110,858 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,554,859. The stock has a market cap of $5.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.70, a PEG ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $63.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $57.96. Alaska Air Group has a 1 year low of $32.62 and a 1 year high of $78.08.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.52. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 14.66%. On average, research analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Joseph A. Sprague sold 9,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.90, for a total value of $654,550.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 9,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $677,976. This trade represents a 49.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Shane R. Tackett sold 22,893 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.74, for a total value of $1,733,915.82. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 31,873 shares in the company, valued at $2,414,061.02. The trade was a 41.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 154,725 shares of company stock worth $11,217,263. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Alaska Air Group

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FMR LLC lifted its position in Alaska Air Group by 328.7% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,649,388 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $301,048,000 after purchasing an additional 3,564,749 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Alaska Air Group during the fourth quarter valued at $82,459,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 134.0% in the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,134,221 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $138,191,000 after purchasing an additional 1,222,277 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 4,615.3% during the 4th quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 943,064 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $61,063,000 after purchasing an additional 923,064 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Candlestick Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $51,306,000. Institutional investors own 81.90% of the company’s stock.

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.