5,521 Shares in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) Acquired by Teacher Retirement System of Texas

Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new stake in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund acquired 5,521 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $357,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ALK. Credit Capital Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group in the 4th quarter worth $648,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $890,000. Privium Fund Management UK Ltd bought a new position in Alaska Air Group during the fourth quarter worth about $1,105,000. North Forty Two & Co. acquired a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group during the 4th quarter worth about $249,000. Finally, Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 49,905 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,231,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. 81.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ALK has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $85.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Susquehanna raised shares of Alaska Air Group from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and set a $95.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Alaska Air Group from $83.00 to $81.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $77.00.

Alaska Air Group Price Performance

Shares of ALK opened at $49.24 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $32.62 and a twelve month high of $78.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a 50 day moving average of $65.72 and a 200-day moving average of $57.74.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.52. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 14.66%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Alaska Air Group

In related news, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 6,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.28, for a total transaction of $503,448.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 34,030 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,595,808.40. The trade was a 16.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Shane R. Tackett sold 22,893 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.74, for a total transaction of $1,733,915.82. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 31,873 shares in the company, valued at $2,414,061.02. This trade represents a 41.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 154,725 shares of company stock valued at $11,217,263. 0.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.