Axa S.A. Increases Stake in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK)

Axa S.A. grew its stake in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) by 106.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 30,367 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 15,667 shares during the period. Axa S.A.’s holdings in Alaska Air Group were worth $1,227,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $13,434,000. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its position in Alaska Air Group by 28.4% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,688 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 373 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 55,599 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,172,000 after purchasing an additional 550 shares during the period. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $221,000. Finally, Pinebridge Investments L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,144,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.90% of the company’s stock.

Alaska Air Group Trading Down 0.2 %

ALK opened at $45.12 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 1.59. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $37.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $40.20. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $30.75 and a 1-year high of $46.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.66.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 18th. The transportation company reported $2.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.19. Alaska Air Group had a return on equity of 11.85% and a net margin of 2.14%. The company had revenue of $2.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.00 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 4.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ALK. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Alaska Air Group from $42.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $51.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Alaska Air Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $54.00.

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.