Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) Shares Sold by Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc.

Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. reduced its stake in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) by 15.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 644,701 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 113,946 shares during the quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.51% of Alaska Air Group worth $41,744,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ALK. Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 44.8% in the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 588 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Alaska Air Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $52,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 61.6% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 955 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 364 shares during the period. Pacific Center for Financial Services acquired a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position 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 valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 474 shares during the period. 81.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Alaska Air Group

In other news, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 6,600 shares of Alaska Air Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.28, for a total value of $503,448.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 34,030 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,595,808.40. This trade represents a 16.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Muehlen Constance E. Von sold 22,157 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.12, for a total value of $1,664,433.84. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 20,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,504,353.12. This represents a 52.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 162,618 shares of company stock worth $11,722,035. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ALK has been the subject of several analyst reports. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $85.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays raised their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $55.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Susquehanna raised shares of Alaska Air Group from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and set a $95.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $77.00.

Alaska Air Group Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of ALK stock opened at $52.52 on Friday. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $32.62 and a fifty-two week high of $78.08. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $69.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $56.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.61.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.52. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 14.66%. Equities research analysts predict that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 EPS 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.