Heartland Advisors Inc. Buys New Stake in Alaska Air Group, Inc. $ALK

Heartland Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 26,945 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,407,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Allworth Financial LP acquired a new position in shares of Alaska Air Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $293,000. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,288,000. Great Lakes Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Alaska Air Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,389,000. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Alaska Air Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $606,307,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG bought a new position in Alaska Air Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $981,000. 81.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Alaska Air Group news, CEO Benito Minicucci purchased 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $40.06 per share, with a total value of $1,001,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 256,582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,278,674.92. This trade represents a 10.80% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Andrew R. Harrison sold 5,300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.67, for a total transaction of $263,251.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 25,528 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,267,975.76. This trade represents a 17.19% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Alaska Air Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ALK opened at $40.46 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -25.77 and a beta of 1.29. Alaska Air Group, Inc. has a one year low of $33.03 and a one year high of $65.88. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $48.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $45.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58.

Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The transportation company reported ($0.92) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.99) by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $4.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.09 billion. Alaska Air Group had a negative net margin of 1.19% and a negative return on equity of 3.11%. The business’s revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.42 earnings per share. Alaska Air Group has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.000-1.000 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Alaska Air Group, Inc. will post -1.22 EPS for the current year.

Alaska Air Group News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Alaska Air Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: CEO Benito Minicucci purchased 25,000 Alaska Air shares at an average price of $40.06, investing approximately $1 million and increasing his direct ownership by 10.8%. The sizable open-market purchase may support investor confidence that management views the selloff as an attractive entry point. Alaska Air CEO share purchase article
• Positive Sentiment: Alaska Airlines plans to add nonstop Seattle flights to Athens and Paris in 2027. The new routes expand its long-haul network and could create additional revenue opportunities while strengthening Seattle as a global gateway. Alaska Airlines Athens and Paris routes article
• Neutral Sentiment: The stock has declined about 28% over the referenced period and was down 7.1% since its latest earnings report, keeping valuation and management’s insider purchase in focus. The decline also reflects continued concerns about the airline’s earnings outlook.
• Negative Sentiment: Alaska Air’s latest quarterly results showed a loss of $0.92 per share, although that was better than the $0.99 consensus estimate. Revenue increased 9.7% year over year to $4.07 billion but slightly missed expectations, and the company remained unprofitable. Analysts expect a full-year loss, indicating that the new international routes may take time to contribute meaningfully.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ALK has been the topic of several research analyst reports. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $59.00 price objective (up from $51.00) on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Alaska Air Group from $55.00 to $62.50 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $69.00 price target (up from $58.00) on shares of Alaska Air Group in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $62.00 price objective (up from $56.00) on shares of Alaska Air Group in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Alaska Air Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $65.65.

About Alaska Air Group

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.