17,696 Shares in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV Bought by Diversify Advisory Services LLC

Diversify Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 17,696 shares of the airline’s stock, valued at approximately $803,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LUV. North Dakota State Investment Board purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter worth about $2,189,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 954.1% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 127,331 shares of the airline’s stock worth $4,784,000 after acquiring an additional 115,251 shares during the period. Gradient Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 19.3% in the 2nd quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 539,612 shares of the airline’s stock worth $27,747,000 after acquiring an additional 87,146 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 575,639 shares of the airline’s stock worth $23,774,000 after acquiring an additional 31,128 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio lifted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 250.1% in the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 39,437 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $1,630,000 after purchasing an additional 28,172 shares during the period. 80.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Southwest Airlines Stock Down 3.7%

LUV stock opened at $39.87 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.46, a P/E/G ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.49 and a quick ratio of 0.42. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 1-year low of $29.26 and a 1-year high of $55.11. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $47.38 and a 200-day moving average price of $44.56.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The airline reported $0.94 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.42. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 14.15% and a net margin of 2.78%.The company had revenue of $8.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.58 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.43 EPS. Southwest Airlines’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. 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. Equities analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 3.41 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 Thursday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be paid a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 3rd. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Southwest Airlines’s payout ratio is currently 44.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on LUV. Weiss Ratings upgraded Southwest Airlines from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Raymond James Financial increased their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Evercore boosted their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $52.00 in a report on Thursday, June 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $60.00 to $59.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted 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. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.55.

Southwest Airlines Company Profile

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.