10,489 Shares in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) Acquired by Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 10,489 shares of the airline's stock, valued at approximately $353,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of LUV. Studio Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Southwest Airlines by 5.2% during the third quarter. Studio Investment Management LLC now owns 6,978 shares of the airline's stock worth $207,000 after buying an additional 343 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 41.1% in the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,184 shares of the airline's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares during the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,116 shares of the airline's stock valued at $340,000 after buying an additional 369 shares during the period. Axiom Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Axiom Advisory LLC now owns 18,306 shares of the airline's stock worth $507,000 after buying an additional 375 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wahed Invest LLC raised its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 11.5% during the 3rd quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 3,638 shares of the airline's stock valued at $108,000 after buying an additional 375 shares during the period. 80.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LUV traded down $0.06 on Thursday, reaching $31.59. 7,775,473 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,875,778. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 1-year low of $23.58 and a 1-year high of $36.12. The company has a 50-day moving average of $33.01 and a 200-day moving average of $30.40. The firm has a market cap of $18.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -451.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.14.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The airline reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.11. Southwest Airlines had a negative net margin of 0.06% and a positive return on equity of 4.56%. Equities analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 0.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 26th. Southwest Airlines's dividend payout ratio is presently -1,028.57%.

Insider Activity at Southwest Airlines

In other news, insider Linda B. Rutherford sold 3,849 shares of Southwest Airlines stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.40, for a total value of $132,405.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 89,376 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,074,534.40. The trade was a 4.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on LUV shares. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "sell" rating and set a $28.00 price target on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $42.00 price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. TD Cowen raised their price target on Southwest Airlines from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Southwest Airlines from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $32.31.

About Southwest Airlines

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.