Soros Fund Management LLC Acquires New Stake in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK)

Soros Fund Management LLC bought a new position in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 175,808 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,384,000. Soros Fund Management LLC owned about 0.14% of Alaska Air Group at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 421.9% in the 4th quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 704,575 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $45,621,000 after acquiring an additional 569,584 shares during the last quarter. Candlestick Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,306,000. Lido Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $215,000. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 14.1% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 777,330 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $50,332,000 after buying an additional 96,134 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC purchased a new position in Alaska Air Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $435,000. 81.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Alaska Air Group news, SVP Andrea L. Schneider sold 1,830 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.32, for a total transaction of $134,175.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 20,286 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,487,369.52. This trade represents a 8.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Shane R. Tackett sold 22,893 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,873 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,414,061.02. This represents a 41.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 53,480 shares of company stock valued at $4,035,973 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Alaska Air Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. UBS Group downgraded Alaska Air Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $75.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on Alaska Air Group from $83.00 to $81.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $65.92.

Alaska Air Group Trading Up 2.6 %

NYSE ALK opened at $43.01 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $5.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.37. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $32.62 and a fifty-two week high of $78.08. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $53.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $58.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.61.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last issued 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 return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 3.37%. The company had revenue of $3.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.92) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 40.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 earnings per share for the current year.

About Alaska Air Group

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.