Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV – Free Report) by 23.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 939,398 shares of the airline’s stock after acquiring an additional 180,619 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $38,916,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SHP Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL boosted its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 37.9% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 7,275 shares of the airline’s stock worth $301,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. MidFirst Bank bought a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its position in Southwest Airlines by 25.8% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 84,394 shares of the airline’s stock worth $3,284,000 after purchasing an additional 17,320 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strive Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the 4th quarter valued at about $50,000. 80.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Analyst Ratings Changes
LUV has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $55.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. HSBC raised Southwest Airlines from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price target for the company from $24.40 to $36.10 in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings lowered Southwest Airlines from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. Zacks Research cut Southwest Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $54.00 to $44.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Southwest Airlines has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $44.95.
Southwest Airlines Stock Up 1.7%
LUV opened at $49.38 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market cap of $24.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.86, a PEG ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.15. Southwest Airlines Co. has a twelve month low of $28.98 and a twelve month high of $55.11. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $41.71 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $42.92.
Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The airline reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 10.66%. The firm had revenue of $7.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.13) EPS. The company’s revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Southwest Airlines has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.350-0.650 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 2.93 earnings per share for the current year.
Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 11th. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio is 46.45%.
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.
Featured Articles
- Five stocks we like better than Southwest Airlines
- Oracle’s Sell-Off Looks More Like a Mispricing Than a Warning
- Apple’s Intel Deal Arrives at the Right Time for Its Stock
- Liquid Gold: The AI Cooling Retrofit Trade
- 3 Dividend Stocks Under $30 to Anchor Your Portfolio
Want to see what other hedge funds are holding LUV? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV – Free Report).
Receive News & Ratings for Southwest Airlines Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Southwest Airlines and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
