Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV Shares Bought by Empowered Funds LLC

Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 259.3% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 59,310 shares of the airline’s stock after buying an additional 42,804 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $3,050,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 100.6% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 39,347 shares of the airline’s stock worth $1,303,000 after acquiring an additional 19,729 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 5.4% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 61,060 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $2,050,000 after purchasing an additional 3,141 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 73.4% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,690 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $185,000 after purchasing an additional 2,408 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in Southwest Airlines by 47.4% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 307,602 shares of the airline’s stock worth $9,979,000 after purchasing an additional 98,986 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. acquired a new stake in Southwest Airlines during the second quarter worth about $80,000. 80.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southwest Airlines Stock Down 2.2%

Shares of LUV opened at $37.69 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $18.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.13. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 12-month low of $29.26 and a 12-month high of $55.11. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $46.15 and its 200 day moving average price is $43.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The airline reported $0.94 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.42. The company had revenue of $8.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.58 billion. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 2.78% and a return on equity of 14.15%. Southwest Airlines’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.43 earnings per share. Southwest Airlines has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.250-4.250 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.500-0.750 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 3.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 3rd. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on LUV shares. Raymond James Financial decreased their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $60.00 to $54.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $56.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $55.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $53.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Southwest Airlines currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $49.01.

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.