Stock Traders Buy Large Volume of Alaska Air Group Call Options (NYSE:ALK)

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) was the target of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders acquired 9,730 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 102% compared to the average daily volume of 4,813 call options.

Alaska Air Group Stock Up 10.0%

Alaska Air Group stock traded up $3.61 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $39.82. The stock had a trading volume of 2,307,139 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,170,374. Alaska Air Group has a 52 week low of $33.03 and a 52 week high of $65.88. The company has a market cap of $4.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 75.13 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.43 and a quick ratio of 0.39. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $39.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.50.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 20th. The transportation company reported ($1.68) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.61) by ($0.07). Alaska Air Group had a return on equity of 4.96% and a net margin of 0.51%.The business had revenue of $3.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.31 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.77) EPS. Alaska Air Group’s revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. Alaska Air Group has set its Q2 2026 guidance at -1.000–1.000 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Alaska Air Group will post -1.04 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Zacks Research upgraded Alaska Air Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup downgraded Alaska Air Group from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $51.00 to $32.00 in a report on Friday, May 1st. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Alaska Air Group from $63.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 9th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $42.50 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Alaska Air Group from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $61.85.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alaska Air Group

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. First Command Advisory Services Inc. boosted its position in Alaska Air Group by 242.5% in the 4th quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. now owns 685 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Alaska Air Group by 43.2% in the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 838 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.90% of the company’s stock.

Alaska Air Group Company Profile

Alaska Air Group is a publicly traded holding company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, that operates two main airlines—Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air. Through these carriers, the company offers scheduled passenger and cargo services across a network spanning the United States, Canada and Mexico. Its core business activities include domestic and international air transportation, loyalty program management under the Mileage Plan brand, and ancillary revenue streams such as baggage fees, in-flight sales and code-share partnerships with other global airlines.

The roots of Alaska Air Group trace back to the foundation of its flagship carrier, Alaska Airlines, in 1932.