Quadrature Capital Ltd Reduces Stake in Alaska Air Group, Inc. $ALK

Quadrature Capital Ltd reduced its holdings in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) by 74.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,745 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 22,457 shares during the quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd’s holdings in Alaska Air Group were worth $383,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in ALK. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in Alaska Air Group by 1.3% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,266,619 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $161,632,000 after acquiring an additional 42,454 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 249.1% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,638,464 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $129,865,000 after purchasing an additional 1,882,598 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,215,697 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $109,657,000 after purchasing an additional 77,531 shares during the period. ARGA Investment Management LP boosted its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 7.2% during the 2nd quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 1,099,190 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $54,388,000 after purchasing an additional 74,137 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 36.7% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,062,712 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $52,307,000 after buying an additional 285,382 shares during the period. 81.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alaska Air Group Price Performance

ALK stock opened at $42.67 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.52. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $44.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $50.77. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $37.63 and a 52-week high of $78.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.41, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.24.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.06). Alaska Air Group had a return on equity of 8.93% and a net margin of 1.06%.The company had revenue of $3.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.75 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.25 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ALK has been the subject of a number of research reports. Raymond James Financial set a $65.00 price target on shares of Alaska Air Group and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Alaska Air Group in a report on Monday. TD Cowen increased their target price on Alaska Air Group from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $65.00 price target on Alaska Air Group in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $73.08.

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.