Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) Shares Sold by Private Advisor Group LLC

Private Advisor Group LLC cut its position in shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV - Free Report) by 44.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 27,095 shares of the airline's stock after selling 21,327 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC's holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $911,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 186.7% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 883 shares of the airline's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 575 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised 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 buying an additional 345 shares during the period. Finally, New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in Southwest Airlines by 35.3% in the third quarter. New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,923 shares of the airline's stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 502 shares during the last quarter. 80.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southwest Airlines Stock Down 2.3 %

Shares of LUV traded down $0.70 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $29.92. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,655,517 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,704,307. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 12-month low of $23.58 and a 12-month high of $36.12. The stock has a market cap of $17.73 billion, a PE ratio of 41.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.14. The company's 50 day moving average is $31.82 and its 200 day moving average is $31.08.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The airline reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.11. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.69% and a return on equity of 5.77%. Equities analysts anticipate that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.41%. Southwest Airlines's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 100.00%.

Insider Activity

In other Southwest Airlines news, insider Linda B. Rutherford sold 3,849 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on LUV shares. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. UBS Group upped 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and issued a $25.00 price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research note on Monday. Bank of America reissued an "underperform" rating and set a $31.00 target price (down previously from $33.00) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Raymond James raised their target price on Southwest Airlines from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, December 30th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $31.72.

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.