Bank of New York Mellon Corp Increases Stock Holdings in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

Key Points

• Bank of New York Mellon boosted its Southwest Airlines stake by 40.8% in the fourth quarter, ending with 3.75 million shares valued at about $154.9 million.
• Southwest reported Q1 earnings of $0.45 per share, matching estimates, but revenue of $7.25 billion came in below expectations of $8.46 billion.
• The airline declared a quarterly dividend of $0.18 per share and is getting mixed analyst sentiment, with a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $44.21.

Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV - Free Report) by 40.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,747,665 shares of the airline's stock after buying an additional 1,086,101 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned about 0.76% of Southwest Airlines worth $154,891,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Southwest Airlines by 100.6% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 39,347 shares of the airline's stock worth $1,303,000 after purchasing an additional 19,729 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 5.4% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 61,060 shares of the airline's stock valued at $2,050,000 after buying an additional 3,141 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 7,459 shares of the airline's stock valued at $250,000 after buying an additional 527 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 73.4% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,690 shares of the airline's stock valued at $185,000 after buying an additional 2,408 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 47.4% during the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 307,602 shares of the airline's stock valued at $9,979,000 after buying an additional 98,986 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.82% of the company's stock.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

Shares of Southwest Airlines stock opened at $41.61 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.34 billion, a PE ratio of 26.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.15. The business's 50-day moving average price is $39.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.84. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 12 month low of $28.98 and a 12 month high of $55.11.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The airline reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.45. The company had revenue of $7.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.46 billion. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 10.66% and a net margin of 2.83%.Southwest Airlines's quarterly revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.13) EPS. Southwest Airlines has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.350-0.650 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, June 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 11th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. Southwest Airlines's dividend payout ratio is currently 46.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Southwest Airlines from $50.00 to $44.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 16th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Southwest Airlines from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Raymond James Financial boosted their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $42.00 to $40.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $44.21.

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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