Game Creek Capital LP Has $4.96 Million Stock Position in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

Key Points

• Game Creek Capital raised its stake in Southwest Airlines by 140.2% in Q3 to 155,500 shares worth approximately $4.96 million, making LUV its 12th-largest holding (~1.7% of the firm's portfolio).
• Institutional ownership is high at 80.82% with large holders like Invesco (≈6.84M shares) increasing positions, yet Wall Street views are mixed — JPMorgan upgraded to overweight with a $60 target while the consensus rating is a "Hold" and the stock faces near-term headwinds such as route cuts and rising fuel risks.

Game Creek Capital LP raised its position in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV - Free Report) by 140.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 155,500 shares of the airline's stock after purchasing an additional 90,750 shares during the quarter. Southwest Airlines makes up approximately 1.7% of Game Creek Capital LP's holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Game Creek Capital LP's holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $4,962,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 9.2% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,837,197 shares of the airline's stock valued at $218,175,000 after buying an additional 577,326 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in Southwest Airlines by 17.1% during the third quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 437,474 shares of the airline's stock valued at $13,960,000 after acquiring an additional 63,772 shares in the last quarter. BOKF NA raised its position in Southwest Airlines by 16.5% during the third quarter. BOKF NA now owns 7,762 shares of the airline's stock valued at $248,000 after acquiring an additional 1,101 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its stake in Southwest Airlines by 0.3% in the third quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 736,246 shares of the airline's stock valued at $23,494,000 after acquiring an additional 1,981 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the third quarter valued at approximately $123,000. 80.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Southwest Airlines

Here are the key news stories impacting Southwest Airlines this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Unusual call buying — Traders purchased roughly 49,224 LUV calls (about a 104% jump vs. typical daily call volume), which suggests short-term bullish speculative activity or hedging that can support the share price.
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation pieces highlight recent share weakness and longer-term gains — Coverage notes LUV has declined in the past month and 3 months, prompting fresh valuation discussion even as 1‑year returns remain strong; these analyses may attract bargain hunters or prompt more selling depending on investor view. Assessing Southwest Airlines (LUV) Valuation After Recent Share Price Weakness
• Neutral Sentiment: Price-target and thematic pieces summarize street views for 2026 — Roundups of Wall Street price predictions and longer-term outlooks provide context but don’t move fundamentals immediately. Southwest Price Prediction: What Wall Street Thinks LUV Is Worth in 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Redburn raised its price target to $35 but kept a Sell rating — mixed signal: a higher target is constructive while the Sell stance keeps downside narrative alive. Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV) Target Increased to $35 at Redburn Despite Sell Rating
• Negative Sentiment: Southwest will end service at Chicago O'Hare and Washington Dulles — exits from two major airports shrink network reach and could reduce revenue or market share in those metros, raising near-term growth concerns. Southwest Airlines ends service to Chicago's O'Hare and Washington's Dulles airports Southwest Airlines to end service at O'Hare, Dulles
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst downgrades and lower earnings estimates — Jefferies cut its price target to $41 (Hold) and Zacks moved LUV from Strong‑Buy to Hold while trimming FY2028 EPS — these reduce analyst support and can pressure sentiment. Southwest Airlines NYSE: LUV Price Target Lowered to $41.00 at Jefferies Financial Group Zacks.com
• Negative Sentiment: Oil spike and geopolitical risk — Coverage warns that oil returning toward $100/barrel amid the Iran conflict materially raises jet fuel costs and could compress margins across carriers; sector pain can drag LUV despite company-specific factors. Airline Stocks Were Pricing 2026 Like A Runway―Oil Just Made It A Cliff Edge Only 3 U.S. Airlines Can Remain Profitable at Current Oil Prices
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term selling pressure — multiple outlets noted shares sliding last week/month and premarket weakness tied to oil and supply concerns, which can amplify short-term volatility. Why Is Southwest Airlines Stock Sliding Thursday?

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on LUV. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from an "underweight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $36.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Rothschild & Co Redburn lifted their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $27.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $40.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on Southwest Airlines from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price target on Southwest Airlines from $19.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Southwest Airlines presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $47.34.

Southwest Airlines Stock Up 0.4%

LUV stock opened at $38.77 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.28 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a 50-day moving average of $46.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $38.66. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 52-week low of $23.82 and a 52-week high of $55.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.45.

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

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 12th will be given a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 12th. Southwest Airlines's payout ratio is currently 85.71%.

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.

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