Primecap Management Co. CA Cuts Holdings in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK)

Primecap Management Co. CA decreased its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) by 0.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,862,547 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 17,700 shares during the quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA owned approximately 3.02% of Alaska Air Group worth $150,910,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 4,198.3% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 571,589 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $22,332,000 after acquiring an additional 558,291 shares during the last quarter. Trexquant Investment LP increased its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 107,425 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $4,197,000 after acquiring an additional 1,004 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 78.5% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 28,566 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,116,000 after acquiring an additional 12,561 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 979,511 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $38,269,000 after acquiring an additional 77,633 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 11,488 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $449,000 after acquiring an additional 1,068 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Alaska Air Group news, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 6,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.36, for a total transaction of $249,340.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,048 shares in the company, valued at $999,201.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ALK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded Alaska Air Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. TD Cowen raised their price target on Alaska Air Group from $49.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Alaska Air Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $54.00 price target on the stock. Wolfe Research upgraded Alaska Air Group from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $55.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on Alaska Air Group from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $56.60.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

Alaska Air Group stock traded up $0.35 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $42.70. 1,018,356 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,506,027. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $30.75 and a twelve month high of $57.18. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $42.57 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $39.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.65. The firm has a market cap of $5.42 billion, a PE ratio of 22.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.60.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 18th. The transportation company reported ($0.92) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.09) by $0.17. The company had revenue of $2.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.18 billion. Alaska Air Group had a return on equity of 13.54% and a net margin of 2.34%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.62) EPS. Equities analysts predict that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 4.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.