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Alaska Air Group (ALK) Surpasses Market Returns: Some Facts Worth Knowing

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Alaska Air Group (ALK - Free Report) closed the most recent trading day at $51.52, moving +2.43% from the previous trading session. The stock outperformed the S&P 500, which registered a daily gain of 0.19%. At the same time, the Dow added 0.66%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 0.03%.

Shares of the airline witnessed a gain of 6.3% over the previous month, beating the performance of the Transportation sector with its gain of 3.99%, and the S&P 500's gain of 0.54%.

The upcoming earnings release of Alaska Air Group will be of great interest to investors. The company is expected to report EPS of $0.14, down 85.57% from the prior-year quarter. Meanwhile, the latest consensus estimate predicts the revenue to be $3.64 billion, indicating a 3.07% increase compared to the same quarter of the previous year.

In terms of the entire fiscal year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates predict earnings of $2.17 per share and a revenue of $14.25 billion, indicating changes of -55.44% and 0%, respectively, from the former year.

Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for Alaska Air Group. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the business and profitability.

Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. To capitalize on this, we've crafted the Zacks Rank, a unique model that incorporates these estimate changes and offers a practical rating system.

The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has witnessed a 1.66% increase. As of now, Alaska Air Group holds a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

In the context of valuation, Alaska Air Group is at present trading with a Forward P/E ratio of 10.28. This signifies a premium in comparison to the average Forward P/E of 9.3 for its industry.

It's also important to note that ALK currently trades at a PEG ratio of 0.51. The PEG ratio bears resemblance to the frequently used P/E ratio, but this parameter also includes the company's expected earnings growth trajectory. By the end of yesterday's trading, the Transportation - Airline industry had an average PEG ratio of 0.6.

The Transportation - Airline industry is part of the Transportation sector. At present, this industry carries a Zacks Industry Rank of 92, placing it within the top 38% of over 250 industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Make sure to utilize Zacks.com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.


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