Short Interest in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) Increases By 38.7%

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of January. As of January 30th, there was short interest totaling 30,747,629 shares, a growth of 38.7% from the January 15th total of 22,175,818 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 11,960,153 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.6 days. Approximately 6.3% of the shares of the company are short sold. Approximately 6.3% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 11,960,153 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.6 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LUV. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter worth $219,000. USS Investment Management Ltd lifted its stake in Southwest Airlines by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd now owns 82,587 shares of the airline’s stock worth $3,414,000 after purchasing an additional 648 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC lifted its stake in Southwest Airlines by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 51,779 shares of the airline’s stock worth $2,140,000 after purchasing an additional 2,819 shares during the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 17.7% in the 4th quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 36,627 shares of the airline’s stock worth $1,514,000 after purchasing an additional 5,510 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC increased its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 912.2% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 158,466 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $6,549,000 after purchasing an additional 142,811 shares during the last quarter. 80.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

NYSE LUV traded up $0.23 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $51.06. The company had a trading volume of 9,161,857 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,069,958. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 60.79, a PEG ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.15. Southwest Airlines has a 52 week low of $23.82 and a 52 week high of $54.70. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $44.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $36.56.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The airline reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $7.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.51 billion. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.57% and a return on equity of 6.18%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.56 earnings per share. Southwest Airlines has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.000- EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.450- EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Southwest Airlines will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, March 12th will be given a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 12th. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LUV has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Southwest Airlines from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Southwest Airlines from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $43.00 to $57.50 in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Raymond James Financial lifted their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $42.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.92.

About Southwest Airlines

Southwest Airlines Co is a U.S.-based low-cost carrier that operates a point-to-point domestic and near-international airline network. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company primarily flies Boeing 737 aircraft and offers no-frills, single-class service designed to keep fares competitive. Southwest’s operating model emphasizes high aircraft utilization, quick turnaround times and an open seating policy, allowing customers to board and select seats on a first-come, first-served basis.

Founded in 1967 by Herb Kelleher and Rollin King as Air Southwest Company, Southwest began commercial service in 1971, initially connecting Dallas, Houston and San Antonio.