Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) Updates Q2 Earnings Guidance

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) updated its second quarter earnings guidance on Thursday. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of $2.20-3.20 for the period, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.12. Alaska Air Group also updated its FY 2024 guidance to 3.250-5.250 EPS.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on ALK. Susquehanna lowered Alaska Air Group from a positive rating to a neutral rating and upped their price target for the company from $39.00 to $40.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. UBS Group started coverage on Alaska Air Group in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. They set a buy rating and a $54.00 price target on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Alaska Air Group from a hold rating to a buy rating and upped their target price for the stock from $44.00 to $51.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. StockNews.com lowered Alaska Air Group from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Melius lowered Alaska Air Group from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Monday, January 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $57.44.

Alaska Air Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ALK opened at $42.72 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $5.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.60, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.63. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $39.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. Alaska Air Group has a twelve month low of $30.75 and a twelve month high of $57.18.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The transportation company reported ($0.92) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.85) by ($0.07). Alaska Air Group had a return on equity of 14.72% and a net margin of 2.25%. The business had revenue of $2.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.62) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Alaska Air Group will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Alaska Air Group news, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 6,500 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.36, for a total transaction of $249,340.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,048 shares in the company, valued at $999,201.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ALK. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 78.2% in the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 9,980 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $579,000 after purchasing an additional 4,379 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 23.6% in the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 34,204 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,984,000 after purchasing an additional 6,520 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS boosted its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 7.1% in the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 16,847 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $977,000 after purchasing an additional 1,119 shares in the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. bought a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group in the first quarter valued at about $980,000. Finally, Great West Life Assurance Co. Can raised its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 3.4% in the first quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 17,972 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,077,000 after buying an additional 592 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.90% of the company’s stock.

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.