GSA Capital Partners LLP Invests $2.26 Million in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK)

GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new stake in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 49,928 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,257,000.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Alaska Air Group during the first quarter valued at about $499,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 17,780 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $764,000 after buying an additional 559 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 63,200 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,717,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new position in Alaska Air Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,208,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 23.3% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 60,538 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,602,000 after acquiring an additional 11,447 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI cut their price target on Alaska Air Group from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Susquehanna raised their target price on Alaska Air Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Barclays started coverage on Alaska Air Group in a research report on Monday, October 21st. They set an “overweight” rating and a $55.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $52.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Melius Research raised shares of Alaska Air Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $56.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, October 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Alaska Air Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $54.17.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

Alaska Air Group stock opened at $51.84 on Tuesday. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $32.00 and a fifty-two week high of $52.19. 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 $6.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.59. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $43.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.07.

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

Alaska Air Group 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.