Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 41,650,000 shares, a growth of 29.1% from the February 13th total of 32,250,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 8,920,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.7 days. Currently, 7.1% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Southwest Airlines Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of LUV traded up $0.26 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $34.41. The company had a trading volume of 4,500,516 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,026,874. The firm has a market cap of $20.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.83, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.10. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $31.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $31.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Southwest Airlines has a 52-week low of $23.58 and a 52-week high of $36.12.

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

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Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 12th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. Southwest Airlines's dividend payout ratio is presently 100.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director C. David Cush bought 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $30.03 per share, with a total value of $150,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 19,011 shares of the company's stock, valued at $570,900.33. This represents a 35.69 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 186.7% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 883 shares of the airline's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 575 shares during the period. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. boosted its position in Southwest Airlines by 196.3% during the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. now owns 889 shares of the airline's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 589 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its position in Southwest Airlines by 41.1% during the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,184 shares of the airline's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. Finally, VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.82% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on LUV. Melius raised Southwest Airlines from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday. Raymond James raised their price target on Southwest Airlines from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, December 30th. Argus raised Southwest Airlines from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $35.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "sell" rating and issued a $29.50 price target (down from $31.50) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on Southwest Airlines from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $32.52.

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.