Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) Shares Sold by King Luther Capital Management Corp

King Luther Capital Management Corp cut its position in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 9.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 50,503 shares of the airline’s stock after selling 5,090 shares during the period. King Luther Capital Management Corp’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $1,696,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in LUV. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 66.0% in the fourth quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 6,014,828 shares of the airline’s stock worth $202,219,000 after acquiring an additional 2,391,495 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,541,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 2,857.9% in the fourth quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,013,657 shares of the airline’s stock worth $34,079,000 after acquiring an additional 979,388 shares during the last quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 1.6% in the first quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 49,688,308 shares of the airline’s stock worth $1,668,533,000 after acquiring an additional 788,255 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WS Management Lllp acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter worth approximately $20,172,000. 80.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southwest Airlines Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of NYSE LUV opened at $29.07 on Tuesday. Southwest Airlines Co. has a twelve month low of $23.82 and a twelve month high of $37.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $33.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $31.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.27 billion, a PE ratio of 44.05, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.26.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The airline reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by ($0.08). Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.43% and a return on equity of 6.27%. The firm had revenue of $7.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.30 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.58 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Airlines announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the airline to buy up to 9.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The company 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 of this dividend is Wednesday, September 3rd. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Southwest Airlines’s payout ratio is presently 109.09%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Gregg A. Saretsky bought 3,345 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $30.03 per share, with a total value of $100,450.35. Following 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 purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Sarah Feinberg purchased 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $30.01 per share, for a total transaction of $45,015.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 14,229 shares in the company, valued at $427,012.29. This trade represents a 11.78% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $40.00 price objective (down previously from $42.00) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. HSBC downgraded Southwest Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Southwest Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $27.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $33.06.

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.