Korea Investment CORP Has $1.33 Million Stock Holdings in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV)

Korea Investment CORP lifted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV - Free Report) by 4,277.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 39,400 shares of the airline's stock after purchasing an additional 38,500 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP's holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $1,325,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 186.7% during the fourth 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 period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 41.1% in the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,184 shares of the airline's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 345 shares during the last quarter. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in Southwest Airlines during the fourth quarter worth about $53,000. 80.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

LUV stock traded down $2.97 on Thursday, hitting $28.89. 18,928,098 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,592,549. The stock has a market cap of $17.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.12, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.10. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 1-year low of $23.58 and a 1-year 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 has a fifty day moving average of $31.32 and a 200-day moving average of $31.62.

Remove Ads

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 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, analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Southwest Airlines's dividend payout ratio is presently 100.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Southwest Airlines news, Director C. David Cush purchased 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $30.03 per share, for a total transaction of $150,150.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 19,011 shares of the company's stock, valued at $570,900.33. This represents a 35.69 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Raymond James lifted their target price on Southwest Airlines from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Bank of America restated an "underperform" rating and set a $31.00 price objective (down previously from $33.00) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Susquehanna cut their target price on Southwest Airlines from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Argus upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $35.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $32.43.

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.