Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV Shares Sold by Hedges Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Hedges Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in Southwest Airlines by 35.3% in the second quarter, selling 50,400 shares and retaining 92,300 shares, which now represent about 2.4% of its portfolio.
• Southwest Airlines declared a quarterly dividend of $0.18 per share, set to be paid on September 24, with a payout ratio of 109.09%.
• Several institutional investors have increased their holdings in Southwest Airlines, including GAMMA Investing LLC, which boosted its stake by over 3,500% during the first quarter.

Hedges Asset Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV - Free Report) by 35.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 92,300 shares of the airline's stock after selling 50,400 shares during the period. Southwest Airlines accounts for approximately 2.4% of Hedges Asset Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest position. Hedges Asset Management LLC's holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $2,994,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Southwest Airlines by 3,538.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 326,129 shares of the airline's stock valued at $10,951,000 after purchasing an additional 317,166 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Southwest Airlines by 10.4% during the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 63,625 shares of the airline's stock valued at $2,137,000 after purchasing an additional 5,981 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its position in Southwest Airlines by 7.0% during the first quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 11,625 shares of the airline's stock valued at $390,000 after purchasing an additional 759 shares during the last quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC acquired a new stake in Southwest Airlines during the first quarter valued at $313,000. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC boosted its position in Southwest Airlines by 25.1% during the fourth quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 55,691 shares of the airline's stock valued at $1,872,000 after purchasing an additional 11,173 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.82% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Southwest Airlines

In other Southwest Airlines news, Director Sarah Feinberg acquired 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $30.01 per share, for a total transaction of $45,015.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 14,229 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $427,012.29. This trade represents a 11.78% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gregg A. Saretsky acquired 3,345 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price 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 of the company's stock, valued at $710,029.32. This trade represents a 16.48% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.79% of the company's stock.

Southwest Airlines Trading Down 0.1%

Southwest Airlines stock opened at $31.69 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.56. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $32.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $31.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.64 billion, a PE ratio of 48.02, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.19. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 52 week low of $23.82 and a 52 week high of $37.96.

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

Southwest Airlines declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, July 23rd that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the airline to repurchase up to 9.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 24th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 2.3%. Southwest Airlines's payout ratio is presently 109.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on LUV. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Southwest Airlines from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $40.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Southwest Airlines from $28.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. Wall Street Zen lowered Southwest Airlines from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. UBS Group raised their target price on Southwest Airlines from $27.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their target price on Southwest Airlines from $40.00 to $34.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 25th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $33.38.

Southwest Airlines Company Profile

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.

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