Ceredex Value Advisors LLC Takes $19.66 Million Position in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

Ceredex Value Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 382,300 shares of the airline’s stock, valued at approximately $19,658,000. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Southwest Airlines at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vise Technologies Inc. acquired a new stake in Southwest Airlines during the second quarter worth $1,280,000. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 2nd quarter valued at $221,000. NewEdge Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 2nd quarter valued at $420,000. Monetta Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,388,000. Finally, Great Lakes Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 2nd quarter worth about $202,000. 80.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Southwest Airlines Stock Down 3.7%

NYSE LUV opened at $39.87 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $47.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $44.56. Southwest Airlines Co. has a one year low of $29.26 and a one year high of $55.11. The firm has a market cap of $19.50 billion, a PE ratio of 24.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.49 and a quick ratio of 0.42.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The airline reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.42. The firm had revenue of $8.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.58 billion. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 14.15% and a net margin of 2.78%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.43 EPS. 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. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 3.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 3rd. Southwest Airlines’s payout ratio is currently 44.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LUV has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Argus lowered their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $55.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Zacks Research raised Southwest Airlines from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Southwest Airlines from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Susquehanna increased their target price on Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $49.55.

About Southwest Airlines

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.