The Goldman Sachs Group Increases Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Price Target to $79.00

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) had its price objective boosted by investment analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from $70.00 to $79.00 in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the transportation company’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 18.51% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on ALK. UBS Group lifted their price target on Alaska Air Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report 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. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $63.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Barclays boosted their target price on Alaska Air Group from $55.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Melius raised Alaska Air Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $56.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.79.

Alaska Air Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ALK opened at $66.66 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.57. The company has a market cap of $8.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.54. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $59.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $46.81. Alaska Air Group has a 1-year low of $32.62 and a 1-year high of $69.10.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The transportation company reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.22 by $0.03. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 12.81%. The firm had revenue of $3.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.83 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group will post 4.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Shane R. Tackett sold 5,000 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.56, for a total transaction of $317,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,739,128.72. The trade was a 15.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Muehlen Constance E. Von sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.09, for a total transaction of $252,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 12,162 shares in the company, valued at approximately $767,300.58. The trade was a 24.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 34,473 shares of company stock worth $2,198,342. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALK. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group in the second quarter valued at $28,000. Pacific Center for Financial Services acquired a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $45,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 86.0% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,025 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 474 shares during the period. Pacifica Partners Inc. boosted its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 952.4% in the third quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 1,105 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $52,000. 81.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.