Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Raises Position in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV - Free Report) by 11.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 662,243 shares of the airline's stock after purchasing an additional 65,403 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned about 0.11% of Southwest Airlines worth $22,258,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its position 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 acquiring an additional 575 shares during the period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 41.1% in the third 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 period. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter worth about $53,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.82% of the company's stock.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

NYSE LUV traded down $2.72 on Friday, reaching $26.15. The stock had a trading volume of 4,034,456 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,576,892. The stock has a market cap of $15.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.94. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 12-month low of $23.58 and a 12-month high of $36.12. The business's 50-day moving average price is $31.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $31.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.92.

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Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th were issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. Southwest Airlines's dividend payout ratio is currently 100.00%.

Insider Activity at Southwest Airlines

In related news, Director C. David Cush bought 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $30.03 per share, for a total transaction of $150,150.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 19,011 shares of the company's stock, valued at $570,900.33. This trade represents a 35.69 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LUV has been the subject of several recent research reports. Barclays lifted their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from a "hold" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $28.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday. Raymond James boosted their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $42.00 price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Southwest Airlines from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $35.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Southwest Airlines presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $32.43.

Southwest Airlines 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.