Comerica Bank Grows Holdings in Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK)

Comerica Bank increased its position in shares of Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) by 88.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 174,178 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 81,533 shares during the quarter. Comerica Bank owned approximately 0.14% of Alaska Air Group worth $7,488,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the first quarter worth about $336,000. Interval Partners LP increased its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 80,000 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $3,439,000 after acquiring an additional 40,000 shares during the period. Appian Way Asset Management LP bought a new stake in Alaska Air Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,640,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in Alaska Air Group by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 69,382 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,983,000 after acquiring an additional 3,652 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors purchased a new position in Alaska Air Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,993,000. 81.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alaska Air Group Trading Down 2.8 %

Alaska Air Group stock traded down $1.00 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $35.34. The stock had a trading volume of 571,054 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,195,661. The stock has a market cap of $4.48 billion, a PE ratio of 19.43, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.60. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $30.75 and a 52 week high of $47.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.63. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $39.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $39.91.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The transportation company reported $2.55 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.19. Alaska Air Group had a net margin of 2.14% and a return on equity of 11.97%. The firm had revenue of $2.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.94 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.00 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post 4.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on ALK shares. TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $58.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Alaska Air Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Alaska Air Group from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of Alaska Air Group from $42.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alaska Air Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $54.60.

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.