Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) Short Interest Down 19.6% in December

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) was the target of a large decrease in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totaling 25,775,997 shares, a decrease of 19.6% from the November 30th total of 32,079,035 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 13,333,618 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.9 days. Approximately 5.0% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Approximately 5.0% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 13,333,618 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.9 days.

Institutional Trading of Southwest Airlines

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 43.7% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,335,167 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $393,615,000 after purchasing an additional 3,753,183 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 13.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 12,218,086 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $389,879,000 after buying an additional 1,459,235 shares during the period. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership boosted its stake in Southwest Airlines by 0.9% in the second quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 10,763,935 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $349,182,000 after acquiring an additional 98,290 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its stake in Southwest Airlines by 2,403.8% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 10,120,368 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $328,305,000 after acquiring an additional 9,716,160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,837,197 shares of the airline’s stock worth $218,175,000 after acquiring an additional 577,326 shares during the period. 80.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LUV has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $38.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 8th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $38.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Southwest Airlines from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Southwest Airlines from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $43.00 price objective (up previously from $33.00) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $39.44.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

LUV opened at $41.34 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.49 and a quick ratio of 0.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 63.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.16. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $35.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $33.78. Southwest Airlines has a one year low of $23.82 and a one year high of $43.54.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The airline reported ($0.38) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $6.17 billion for the quarter. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 6.39% and a net margin of 1.38%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Southwest Airlines will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 16th. Investors of record on Friday, December 26th will be issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 26th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 110.77%.

Southwest Airlines Company 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.