Alaska Air Group Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:ALK)

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Investors bought 19,855 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 364% compared to the typical volume of 4,280 call options.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

NYSE:ALK opened at $62.31 on Wednesday. Alaska Air Group has a 1 year low of $38.97 and a 1 year high of $78.08. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $55.57 and a 200-day moving average of $52.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.45.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $3.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.65 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.55 earnings per share. Alaska Air Group’s quarterly revenue was up 27.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Alaska Air Group has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 1.000-1.400 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 3.250- EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Alaska Air Group will post 6.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on ALK. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $49.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Alaska Air Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $70.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, August 25th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Alaska Air Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Alaska Air Group news, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 7,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Kyle B. Levine sold 5,914 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.75, for a total transaction of $341,533.50. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 20,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,207,956.75. This represents a 22.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 18,514 shares of company stock worth $1,031,306 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its position in Alaska Air Group by 8.6% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 15,565 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $770,000 after purchasing an additional 1,239 shares during the last quarter. Total Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Alaska Air Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $61,000. State of Wyoming raised its position in Alaska Air Group by 102.1% in the 2nd quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 3,761 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $186,000 after purchasing an additional 1,900 shares during the last quarter. Semper Augustus Investments Group LLC raised its position in Alaska Air Group by 7.9% in the 2nd quarter. Semper Augustus Investments Group LLC now owns 372,013 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $18,407,000 after purchasing an additional 27,179 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rexford Capital Inc. bought a new position in Alaska Air Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $49,000. 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.