Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $41.90, but opened at $43.58. Alaska Air Group shares last traded at $42.64, with a volume of 489,847 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $46.00 price objective (down from $59.00) on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research report on Monday, August 24th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $55.00 to $62.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $54.00 target price (up from $52.00) on shares of Alaska Air Group in a report on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $69.00 price target (up from $58.00) on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $52.00 price objective (down from $60.00) on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research report on Monday, August 24th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.27.

Alaska Air Group Stock Up 0.1%

The firm has a market cap of $4.67 billion, a PE ratio of -26.74 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $44.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $43.35.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The transportation company reported ($0.92) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.99) by $0.07. Alaska Air Group had a negative return on equity of 3.11% and a negative net margin of 1.19%.The business had revenue of $4.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.09 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.42 earnings per share. Alaska Air Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. Alaska Air Group has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.000-1.000 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post -1.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alaska Air Group

In related news, CEO Benito Minicucci acquired 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $40.06 per share, with a total value of $1,001,500.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 256,582 shares in the company, valued at $10,278,674.92. This represents a 10.80% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 5,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.67, for a total transaction of $263,251.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 25,528 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,267,975.76. The trade was a 17.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALK. Capstone Financial Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 4.6% in the second quarter. Capstone Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 30,206 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,577,000 after purchasing an additional 1,339 shares in the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP grew its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 1,445.3% during the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 87,187 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $4,551,000 after purchasing an additional 81,545 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 29.9% in the second quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 32,134 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,677,000 after buying an additional 7,391 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Alaska Air Group by 3.6% in the second quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 503,555 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $26,286,000 after purchasing an additional 17,588 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP increased its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 32.2% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 5,613 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $293,000 after acquiring an additional 1,367 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.90% of the company’s stock.

Alaska Air Group Company Profile

Alaska Air Group, Inc is an airline holding company whose principal subsidiaries include Alaska Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines and regional carrier Horizon Air. The company provides scheduled passenger and air cargo transportation, along with related services such as aircraft maintenance and ground handling through affiliated businesses.

Alaska Airlines serves destinations throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Costa Rica and other parts of North America, while Hawaiian Airlines connects the Hawaiian Islands with the U.S.