Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Has $4.38 Million Stake in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. reduced its holdings in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV - Free Report) by 81.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 85,093 shares of the airline's stock after selling 377,810 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.'s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $4,375,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Southwest Airlines by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 40,200,530 shares of the airline's stock worth $1,661,488,000 after purchasing an additional 2,626,853 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 9.2% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,837,197 shares of the airline's stock worth $218,175,000 after acquiring an additional 577,326 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,228,475 shares of the airline's stock worth $257,423,000 after purchasing an additional 244,891 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,763,154 shares of the airline's stock valued at $216,472,000 after purchasing an additional 117,833 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 4th quarter valued at about $172,038,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.82% of the company's stock.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

Shares of LUV opened at $45.03 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $22.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.63, a PEG ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 1.14. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 1-year low of $29.26 and a 1-year high of $55.11. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $47.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $44.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The airline reported $0.94 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.42. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 2.78% and a return on equity of 14.15%. The firm had revenue of $8.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.43 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Southwest Airlines has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.250-4.250 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.500-0.750 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 3.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 3rd. Southwest Airlines's payout ratio is currently 44.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on LUV. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Susquehanna lifted their target price on Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Southwest Airlines from $60.00 to $59.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $58.50 to $60.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $49.55.

Southwest Airlines Company Profile

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.

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