Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Shares Cross Above Fifty Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) crossed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $38.92 and traded as high as $40.57. Alaska Air Group shares last traded at $39.9720, with a volume of 4,261,320 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on ALK shares. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research report on Friday, September 25th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $33.00 price objective (down from $37.00) on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $41.00 price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Barclays set a $52.00 target price on shares of Alaska Air Group and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $50.00 to $43.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Sell 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 $52.38.

Alaska Air Group Stock Up 8.7%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The stock has a market cap of $4.45 billion, a P/E ratio of -11.39 and a beta of 1.43. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $38.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $43.97.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The transportation company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.39 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.31 billion. Alaska Air Group had a negative return on equity of 5.42% and a negative net margin of 2.58%. The firm’s revenue was up 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.05 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post -4.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Benito Minicucci bought 25,000 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was bought at an average price of $40.06 per share, for a total transaction of $1,001,500.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 256,582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,278,674.92. The trade was a 10.80% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund boosted its position in Alaska Air Group by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 23,499 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $864,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Aspire Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Aspire Capital Advisors LLC now owns 9,397 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $491,000 after purchasing an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 32.5% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,570 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 385 shares in the last quarter. Guidance Capital Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Guidance Capital Inc. now owns 19,172 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $734,000 after purchasing an additional 420 shares during the period. Finally, Waverly Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 7.4% in the 2nd quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 8,145 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $425,000 after purchasing an additional 558 shares during the period. 81.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alaska Air Group Company Profile

Alaska Air Group, Inc is an airline holding company headquartered in Seattle, Washington. Its principal subsidiaries include Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines, which operate under separate brands while serving passengers throughout North America, the Pacific and other international markets.

Alaska Airlines provides scheduled passenger and air cargo services across the United States, Canada, Mexico, Costa Rica and the Bahamas, with a strong presence on the U.S. West Coast and in Alaska.