Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Reaches New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $54.14 and last traded at $53.52, with a volume of 217666 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $53.44.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on ALK shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Melius Research upgraded 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. Barclays lifted their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $55.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Alaska Air Group from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $52.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $58.69.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $46.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.60. The stock has a market cap of $6.76 billion, a PE ratio of 21.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.59.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The transportation company reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.22 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3 billion. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 12.81%. Alaska Air Group’s revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.83 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 4.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Pacific Center for Financial Services acquired a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group in the third quarter worth about $45,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake 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 in the last quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 952.4% in the 3rd quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 1,105 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in Alaska Air Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $52,000. 81.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Alaska Air Group

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.