Stance Capital LLC Raises Stock Position in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

Stance Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 590.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 62,511 shares of the airline’s stock after acquiring an additional 53,457 shares during the quarter. Stance Capital LLC’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $1,995,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Corsicana & Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the third quarter worth about $27,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the third quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the third quarter valued at about $37,000. 80.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Southwest Airlines from $29.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $66.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $48.00 to $41.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Raymond James Financial boosted their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $42.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Southwest Airlines presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.29.

Trending Headlines about Southwest Airlines

Here are the key news stories impacting Southwest Airlines this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Broader sector strength: Delta and American raised revenue guidance and airlines rallied as demand appears to outweigh the fuel spike — a positive spillover for Southwest given industry-wide pricing power and capacity recovery. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: UBS retains a “buy” rating on LUV with a $59 price target (lowered), signaling analyst conviction that the shares have significant upside despite fuel pressure. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Management commentary available — Southwest presented at the JPMorgan Industrials Conference; transcript may provide detail on network, costs and fuel hedging that investors will parse for near-term guidance credibility. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: UBS and other firms cut estimates and price targets across U.S. airlines citing “significant uncertainty” around jet fuel — this is a sector headwind but also frames a potential valuation bottom for long-term investors. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry lobbying and operational risks: airline CEOs urged Congress to resolve a shutdown risk that could disrupt travel demand during a peak period; outcome affects near-term traffic. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo cut its price target on LUV to $44 and moved to “equal weight,” signaling reduced upside from that shop and adding selling pressure from some institutional investors. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Network change: Southwest will stop serving Chicago O’Hare and Washington Dulles starting June 4 — could lower revenue from those markets and raises questions about capacity redeployment and unit revenue impact. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Customer backlash: longtime flyers are publicly criticizing changes to A-List benefits, a reputational issue that can affect loyalty and ancillary revenue trends if not addressed. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst downgrades/estimates: Zacks issued a negative earnings estimate for LUV, adding to the chorus of downward revisions that could pressure near-term sentiment. Read More.

Southwest Airlines Trading Up 2.1%

Shares of LUV opened at $41.09 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $20.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.92, a P/E/G ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.10. Southwest Airlines Co. has a one year low of $23.82 and a one year high of $55.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.52. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $46.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.84.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The airline reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.02. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 6.18% and a net margin of 1.57%.The firm had revenue of $7.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.56 EPS. Southwest Airlines’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. Southwest Airlines has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.000- EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.450- EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 12th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 12th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.71%.

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.