ARGA Investment Management LP Increases Position in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK)

ARGA Investment Management LP lifted its position in shares of Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) by 8.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,045,102 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 80,442 shares during the period. Alaska Air Group makes up approximately 2.2% of ARGA Investment Management LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. ARGA Investment Management LP’s holdings in Alaska Air Group were worth $67,670,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ALK. Hennessy Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $82,459,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 2,087.8% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 762,889 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $34,490,000 after purchasing an additional 728,019 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new stake in Alaska Air Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,390,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 45.1% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,422,247 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $64,300,000 after purchasing an additional 442,331 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 32.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,084,639 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $49,037,000 after purchasing an additional 265,343 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ALK. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Susquehanna upgraded shares of Alaska Air Group from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and set a $95.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on Alaska Air Group from $85.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Emily Halverson sold 1,329 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.41, for a total value of $85,600.89. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 7,150 shares in the company, valued at approximately $460,531.50. This represents a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 91,745 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.14, for a total transaction of $6,526,739.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,638 shares in the company, valued at $1,468,187.32. This represents a 81.64 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 137,548 shares of company stock valued at $9,513,807 in the last ninety days. 0.92% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

NYSE ALK opened at $75.56 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $64.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $50.13. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $32.62 and a fifty-two week high of $75.98. The company has a market cap of $9.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.77, a P/E/G ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.55. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.97 earnings per share 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%. Sell-side analysts predict 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.