Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) Given Average Recommendation of “Reduce” by Analysts

Shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the eighteen research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $31.78.

Several brokerages recently weighed in on LUV. Citigroup reissued a “sell” rating and set a $29.50 price target (down previously from $31.50) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Southwest Airlines from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Susquehanna lowered their price target on Southwest Airlines from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $35.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th.

Southwest Airlines Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE LUV opened at $30.19 on Thursday. Southwest Airlines has a 12 month low of $23.58 and a 12 month high of $36.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $32.06 and its 200-day moving average price is $30.91. The stock has a market cap of $17.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.93, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.14.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The airline reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.11. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.69% and a return on equity of 5.77%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 12th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.38%. Southwest Airlines’s payout ratio is 100.00%.

Insider Activity at Southwest Airlines

In related news, insider Linda B. Rutherford sold 3,849 shares of Southwest Airlines stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.40, for a total transaction of $132,405.60. Following the sale, the insider now owns 89,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,074,534.40. This trade represents a 4.13 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 68,653,945 shares of the airline’s stock worth $2,308,146,000 after acquiring an additional 426,878 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in Southwest Airlines by 9.6% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 32,978,869 shares of the airline’s stock worth $1,108,750,000 after purchasing an additional 2,896,150 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,152,996 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $475,092,000 after purchasing an additional 320,421 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,111,634 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $205,476,000 after purchasing an additional 372,313 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 2,391,495 shares during the last quarter. 80.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.