Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest in September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 43,280,000 shares, a drop of 17.2% from the August 31st total of 52,240,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 10,160,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.3 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $29.00 target price (down from $32.00) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $26.00 to $24.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Melius reiterated a “sell” rating and issued a $26.00 target price on shares of Southwest Airlines in a report on Monday, June 10th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $29.00 to $28.25 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $28.38.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of LUV. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. CVA Family Office LLC raised its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 179.5% during the second quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 1,034 shares of the airline’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 664 shares during the last quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in Southwest Airlines in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 80.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LUV traded down $0.40 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $29.53. 11,657,607 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,921,688. The company has a market cap of $17.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.87, a PEG ratio of 27.03 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.90. Southwest Airlines has a twelve month low of $21.91 and a twelve month high of $35.18. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $27.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $27.87.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The airline reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $7.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.32 billion. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 5.92% and a net margin of 0.41%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.09 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines will post 0.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 4th were given a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.44%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 4th. Southwest Airlines’s payout ratio is presently 114.29%.

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.