Aberdeen Group plc Increases Position in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

Aberdeen Group plc lifted its holdings in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 13.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 184,045 shares of the airline’s stock after buying an additional 22,100 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $5,970,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of LUV. Ameriflex Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 7.1% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 4,690 shares of the airline’s stock worth $148,000 after buying an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Copperwynd Financial LLC increased its stake in Southwest Airlines by 2.1% in the first quarter. Copperwynd Financial LLC now owns 16,301 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $547,000 after acquiring an additional 337 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Southwest Airlines by 0.5% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 76,719 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $2,576,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Investments LLC raised its position in Southwest Airlines by 4.5% during the first quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 8,590 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $288,000 after purchasing an additional 369 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bingham Private Wealth LLC raised its position in Southwest Airlines by 3.7% during the second quarter. Bingham Private Wealth LLC now owns 10,880 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $353,000 after purchasing an additional 387 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Airlines Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:LUV opened at $33.33 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $32.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $31.43. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 12-month low of $23.82 and a 12-month high of $37.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The airline reported ($0.38) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.43% and a return on equity of 6.27%. The company had revenue of $6.17 billion for the quarter. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 3rd. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 109.09%.

Southwest Airlines announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, July 23rd that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the airline to purchase up to 9.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on LUV shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded Southwest Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Southwest Airlines from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Southwest Airlines to a “moderate sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Southwest Airlines from $28.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 12th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $33.38.

Insider Transactions at Southwest Airlines

In other news, Director Gregg A. Saretsky bought 3,345 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $30.03 per share, for a total transaction of $100,450.35. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 23,644 shares in the company, valued at approximately $710,029.32. This trade represents a 16.48% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Sarah Feinberg bought 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $30.01 per share, with a total value of $45,015.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 14,229 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $427,012.29. This trade represents a 11.78% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

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.