Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. Takes $211,000 Position in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK)

Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. purchased a new stake in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 3,252 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $211,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund boosted its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 29,816 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,931,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 44.8% during the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 588 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC increased its position in Alaska Air Group by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 6,284 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $407,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Alaska Air Group by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 19,229 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,245,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Plan Group Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alaska Air Group by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Plan Group Financial LLC now owns 8,136 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $527,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Alaska Air Group

In other news, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 91,745 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.14, for a total transaction of $6,526,739.30. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 20,638 shares in the company, valued at $1,468,187.32. This trade represents a 81.64 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Andrea L. Schneider sold 800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.89, for a total transaction of $51,112.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 20,286 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,296,072.54. The trade was a 3.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 155,525 shares of company stock worth $11,268,375. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on ALK shares. Bank of America lifted their target price on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Alaska Air Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. UBS Group lifted their target price on Alaska Air Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Alaska Air Group from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $77.54.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

NYSE ALK opened at $52.27 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.14, a PEG ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.50. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $32.62 and a twelve month high of $78.08. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $68.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $56.82. 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 (NYSE:ALK) last issued its quarterly 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 return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 3.37%. Sell-side analysts expect that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 6.03 EPS for the current 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.