Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Cuts Position in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lessened its position in shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 93.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 7,022 shares of the airline’s stock after selling 95,012 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $290,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LUV. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Entrust Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Optima Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. BNP Paribas Exane raised their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $24.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $57.50 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $42.00 to $37.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $27.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $43.96.

Southwest Airlines Trading Up 0.1%

LUV opened at $42.98 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $39.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.59. The company has a market capitalization of $21.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.73, a PEG ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 1.15. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 52 week low of $28.98 and a 52 week high of $55.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The airline reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.45. The company had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.46 billion. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 10.66% and a net margin of 2.83%.Southwest Airlines’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.13) EPS. Southwest Airlines has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.350-0.650 EPS. Analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 11th. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.45%.

Southwest Airlines Profile

Southwest Airlines Co is a U.S.-based low-cost carrier that operates a point-to-point domestic and near-international airline network. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company primarily flies Boeing 737 aircraft and offers no-frills, single-class service designed to keep fares competitive. Southwest’s operating model emphasizes high aircraft utilization, quick turnaround times and an open seating policy, allowing customers to board and select seats on a first-come, first-served basis.

Founded in 1967 by Herb Kelleher and Rollin King as Air Southwest Company, Southwest began commercial service in 1971, initially connecting Dallas, Houston and San Antonio.