Allegiant Travel (NASDAQ:ALGT) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Shares of Allegiant Travel Company (NASDAQ:ALGT) gapped up before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $84.24, but opened at $89.79. Allegiant Travel shares last traded at $93.1680, with a volume of 62,323 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on ALGT shares. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Allegiant Travel from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Allegiant Travel from $60.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Allegiant Travel from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Susquehanna reaffirmed a “positive” rating and set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Allegiant Travel in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised shares of Allegiant Travel from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $108.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $97.91.

Allegiant Travel Stock Up 10.3%

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.71 billion, a PE ratio of -36.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 1.63. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $91.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $81.76. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Maurice J. Gallagher, Jr. sold 175,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.23, for a total transaction of $19,990,250.00. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 1,962,348 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $224,159,012.04. This trade represents a 8.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 300,000 shares of company stock worth $34,350,512 over the last 90 days. 14.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Allegiant Travel

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in Allegiant Travel by 442.0% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 542 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 442 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in Allegiant Travel by 27.3% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 546 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Allegiant Travel by 43.7% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,227 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 373 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC grew its holdings in Allegiant Travel by 119.2% during the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 1,120 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the last quarter. Finally, iSAM Funds UK Ltd acquired a new position in Allegiant Travel during the third quarter valued at approximately $69,000. Institutional investors own 85.81% of the company’s stock.

Allegiant Travel Company Profile

Allegiant Travel Company is a holding company that operates Allegiant Air, a low‐cost leisure airline offering scheduled and charter air service. The company focuses on connecting underserved secondary markets with popular vacation destinations across the United States. By targeting price‐sensitive leisure travelers, Allegiant Air operates a point‐to‐point network that avoids the traditional hub‐and‐spoke model, providing non‐stop flights from smaller cities to resort and entertainment hubs.

In addition to its core flight operations, Allegiant Travel Company offers packaged travel services that include hotel accommodations, rental cars and attraction tickets through its online portal.