Alaska Air Group Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:ALK)

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Traders bought 15,712 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 220% compared to the average volume of 4,913 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Andrea L. Schneider sold 3,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.50, for a total transaction of $234,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 21,086 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,338,961. This represents a 14.93 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Shane R. Tackett sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.56, for a total value of $317,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 27,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,739,128.72. This trade represents a 15.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 22,580 shares of company stock valued at $1,441,209 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ALK. Retirement Systems of Alabama purchased a new position in Alaska Air Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $5,066,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 633,514 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $28,312,000 after buying an additional 24,796 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Alaska Air Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 3.9% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,061,596 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $93,229,000 after acquiring an additional 78,186 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 1.8% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,058,564 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $47,857,000 after buying an additional 18,233 shares during the last quarter. 81.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alaska Air Group Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of ALK opened at $63.42 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $50.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $42.87. The stock has a market cap of $8.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.57. Alaska Air Group has a 1-year low of $32.62 and a 1-year high of $65.62.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The transportation company reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $3.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.83 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group will post 4.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Melius upgraded shares of Alaska Air Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $56.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, October 28th. Melius Research raised shares of Alaska Air Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $56.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $51.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Alaska Air Group in a report on Friday, November 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Alaska Air Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $64.00.

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.