U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 28,447 Shares of Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK)

U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC lessened its stake in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) by 59.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,189 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 28,447 shares during the quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Alaska Air Group were worth $1,242,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALK. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $82,459,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 2,087.8% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 762,889 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $34,490,000 after buying an additional 728,019 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Alaska Air Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,390,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Alaska Air Group by 45.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,422,247 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $64,300,000 after buying an additional 442,331 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its stake in Alaska Air Group by 32.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,084,639 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $49,037,000 after acquiring an additional 265,343 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Muehlen Constance E. Von sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.09, for a total transaction of $252,360.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 12,162 shares in the company, valued at approximately $767,300.58. The trade was a 24.75 % 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, VP Emily Halverson sold 1,329 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.41, for a total transaction of $85,600.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,150 shares in the company, valued at approximately $460,531.50. This represents a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 137,548 shares of company stock worth $9,513,807. Insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on ALK. Melius raised shares of Alaska Air Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $56.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Susquehanna raised shares of Alaska Air Group from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and set a $95.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $63.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $55.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Melius Research raised shares of Alaska Air Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $56.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.86.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

Shares of ALK stock opened at $75.56 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $64.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $50.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market cap of $9.59 billion, a PE ratio of 24.77, a P/E/G ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.55. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $32.62 and a 12 month high of $75.98.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities research analysts expect that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 EPS 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.