WINTON GROUP Ltd Increases Holdings in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

Key Points

• WINTON GROUP Ltd increased its Southwest Airlines stake by 218.8% in the second quarter, ending with 93,837 shares valued at approximately $4.83 million. Institutional investors collectively own 80.82% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with the stock carrying an average “Hold” rating and a consensus price target of $48.41. Recent targets ranged from $50 to $65, while Citigroup lowered its target to $50.
• Southwest reported quarterly EPS of $0.94, exceeding the $0.52 consensus estimate, on revenue of $8.72 billion. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.18 per share, representing a 1.9% annualized yield.

WINTON GROUP Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV - Free Report) by 218.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 93,837 shares of the airline's stock after purchasing an additional 64,402 shares during the quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd's holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $4,825,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LUV. Engineers Gate Manager LP grew its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 75.1% during the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 814,820 shares of the airline's stock valued at $41,898,000 after buying an additional 349,394 shares in the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 8.7% in the second quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 22,992 shares of the airline's stock worth $1,182,000 after buying an additional 1,836 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 10.5% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 140,652 shares of the airline's stock valued at $7,232,000 after acquiring an additional 13,321 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 22.8% in the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 10,339 shares of the airline's stock valued at $532,000 after acquiring an additional 1,923 shares during the period. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Southwest Airlines by 10.9% during the second quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 15,889 shares of the airline's stock valued at $817,000 after acquiring an additional 1,568 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.82% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore upped their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $52.00 in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $55.00 to $50.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Barclays increased their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $56.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Southwest Airlines from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $48.41.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LUV opened at $38.68 on Friday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $44.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.49 and a quick ratio of 0.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.73, a PEG ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.13. Southwest Airlines Co. has a one year low of $29.26 and a one year high of $55.11.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The airline reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.42. The company had revenue of $8.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.58 billion. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 2.78% and a return on equity of 14.15%. The firm's revenue was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.43 EPS. 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, equities research analysts anticipate that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 3.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 3rd. Southwest Airlines's dividend payout ratio is presently 44.17%.

Southwest Airlines Company Profile

Southwest Airlines Co is a major U.S. passenger airline headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Operating under the Southwest Airlines brand, the company provides scheduled air transportation for domestic and international travelers and also offers air cargo services.

Southwest was founded in 1967 and began commercial service in 1971, initially connecting Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. The airline expanded its network across the United States and now serves numerous destinations in the United States, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America and other nearby international markets.

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