39,061 Shares in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) Purchased by Aigen Investment Management LP

Key Points

• Aigen Investment Management LP has taken a significant position in Southwest Airlines, acquiring 39,061 shares valued at approximately $1.31 million.
• Recent analyst ratings show increased caution regarding Southwest Airlines, with several upgrades and downgrades, leading to a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $33.06.
• Southwest Airlines also announced a $2.00 billion stock buyback program and a quarterly dividend of $0.18, reflecting confidence in its stock value despite a payout ratio of 109.09%.

Aigen Investment Management LP acquired a new position in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 39,061 shares of the airline's stock, valued at approximately $1,312,000.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. CWC Advisors LLC. increased its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. CWC Advisors LLC. now owns 13,310 shares of the airline's stock valued at $447,000 after purchasing an additional 311 shares during the last quarter. Copperwynd Financial LLC increased its position in Southwest Airlines by 2.1% during the first quarter. Copperwynd Financial LLC now owns 16,301 shares of the airline's stock valued at $547,000 after acquiring an additional 337 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 0.5% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 76,719 shares of the airline's stock valued at $2,576,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 22.1% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 2,161 shares of the airline's stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 391 shares during the period. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP raised its position in Southwest Airlines by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 16,998 shares of the airline's stock worth $571,000 after purchasing an additional 399 shares during the period. 80.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Southwest Airlines to a "moderate sell" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Southwest Airlines from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Southwest Airlines from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $40.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Susquehanna increased their price target on Southwest Airlines from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from an "underperform" rating to a "hold" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $24.00 to $33.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $33.06.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Gregg A. Saretsky acquired 3,345 shares of Southwest Airlines stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $30.03 per share, for a total transaction of $100,450.35. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 23,644 shares in the company, valued at $710,029.32. This trade represents a 16.48% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Sarah Feinberg purchased 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $30.01 per share, for a total transaction of $45,015.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 14,229 shares in the company, valued at $427,012.29. This trade represents a 11.78% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.79% of the company's stock.

Southwest Airlines Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of LUV stock traded down $0.19 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $30.78. 5,808,784 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,871,939. The company has a current ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company has a market cap of $16.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.64, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.26. Southwest Airlines Co. has a fifty-two week low of $23.82 and a fifty-two week high of $37.96. The stock's 50 day moving average is $33.00 and its 200-day moving average is $31.15.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The airline reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.51 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $7.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.30 billion. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 6.27% and a net margin of 1.43%. Southwest Airlines's revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.58 EPS. Analysts predict that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 24th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 3rd will be paid a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 3rd. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Southwest Airlines's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 109.09%.

Southwest Airlines declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, July 23rd that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the airline to reacquire up to 9.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

About Southwest Airlines

Southwest Airlines Co operates as a passenger airline company that provides scheduled air transportation services in the United States and near-international markets. As of December 31, 2023, the company operated a total fleet of 817 Boeing 737 aircraft; and served 121 destinations in 42 states, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, as well as ten near-international countries, including Mexico, Jamaica, the Bahamas, Aruba, the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Belize, Cuba, the Cayman Islands, and Turks and Caicos.