Versor Investments LP Acquires Shares of 46,513 Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV)

Versor Investments LP bought a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 46,513 shares of the airline's stock, valued at approximately $1,564,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in LUV. Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 32.9% in the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 65,831 shares of the airline's stock worth $2,105,000 after buying an additional 16,293 shares in the last quarter. Olstein Capital Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 33.7% during the third quarter. Olstein Capital Management L.P. now owns 258,000 shares of the airline's stock worth $7,645,000 after acquiring an additional 65,000 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 6,414.5% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 3,006,000 shares of the airline's stock worth $89,068,000 after acquiring an additional 2,959,857 shares in the last quarter. Highland Peak Capital LLC purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines in the third quarter valued at about $2,963,000. Finally, Vista Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $614,000. 80.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southwest Airlines

In related news, insider Linda B. Rutherford sold 3,849 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $3,074,534.40. This trade represents a 4.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LUV has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Citigroup reiterated a "sell" rating and set a $29.50 target price (down from $31.50) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $42.00 price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an "underweight" rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research note on Monday. Argus raised Southwest Airlines from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $35.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $31.72.

Southwest Airlines Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE LUV traded down $0.44 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $30.62. The company had a trading volume of 8,206,256 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,565,411. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.15 billion, a PE ratio of 42.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.14. Southwest Airlines Co. has a twelve month low of $23.58 and a twelve month high of $36.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.92. The stock's 50 day moving average is $31.89 and its 200-day moving average is $31.05.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV - Get Free Report) last posted 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 return on equity of 5.77% and a net margin of 1.69%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 12th. Southwest Airlines's payout ratio is presently 100.00%.

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.