Employees Retirement System of Texas Sells 20,657 Shares of Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

Employees Retirement System of Texas reduced its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 28.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 51,995 shares of the airline’s stock after selling 20,657 shares during the quarter. Employees Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $2,149,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. World Investment Advisors grew its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 21,148 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $843,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 16,437 shares of the airline’s stock worth $682,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares during the period. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 6,726 shares of the airline’s stock worth $278,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 19,268 shares of the airline’s stock worth $792,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares during the period. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 1.4% during the second quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 24,857 shares of the airline’s stock worth $806,000 after purchasing an additional 333 shares during the period. 80.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

Shares of LUV opened at $43.64 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.48 and a quick ratio of 0.41. Southwest Airlines Co. has a one year low of $28.98 and a one year high of $55.11. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.66 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.33 billion, a PE ratio of 28.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 1.12.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The airline reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.45. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 10.66%. The business had revenue of $7.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.46 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.13) earnings per share. Southwest Airlines’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Southwest Airlines has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.350-0.650 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 2.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The business 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 $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 11th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.45%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LUV has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Seaport Research Partners increased their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $57.00 to $58.00 in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Argus dropped their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $55.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 24th. BNP Paribas Exane increased their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $24.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Raymond James Financial increased their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $43.96.

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.