Meeder Asset Management Inc. Has $593,000 Holdings in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 280.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,570 shares of the airline’s stock after purchasing an additional 13,683 shares during the quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $593,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LUV. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Corsicana & Co. bought a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in Southwest Airlines by 81.4% in the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,056 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 474 shares during the period. Finally, Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the second quarter valued at about $42,000. 80.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Raymond James Financial raised their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $42.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Southwest Airlines from $38.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on Southwest Airlines from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $31.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $42.11.

Southwest Airlines Stock Down 1.5%

NYSE LUV opened at $43.86 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $37.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $34.36. Southwest Airlines Co. has a one year low of $23.82 and a one year high of $45.02. The firm has a market cap of $22.68 billion, a PE ratio of 67.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.27 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.49 and a quick ratio of 0.42.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The airline reported ($0.38) EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of $6.17 billion during the quarter. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 6.39% and a net margin of 1.38%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 16th. Investors of record on Friday, December 26th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 26th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio is 110.77%.

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.