Dorsey Wright & Associates Takes Position in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

Dorsey Wright & Associates purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 92,052 shares of the airline’s stock, valued at approximately $3,458,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the first quarter valued at $1,863,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 15.1% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 9,424 shares of the airline’s stock worth $355,000 after buying an additional 1,239 shares during the period. Gerald Baker Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Southwest Airlines during the 1st quarter worth about $1,847,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 662.4% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 179,583 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $6,865,000 after buying an additional 156,029 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Independent Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 1st quarter valued at about $532,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Airlines Stock Down 2.7%

Shares of NYSE LUV opened at $48.09 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $23.50 billion, a PE ratio of 31.02, a P/E/G ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 1.12. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 12-month low of $28.98 and a 12-month high of $55.11. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $45.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $44.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The airline reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45. The business had revenue of $7.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.46 billion. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 10.66% and a net margin of 2.83%.The firm’s revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.13) EPS. Southwest Airlines has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.350-0.650 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 3.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, June 11th were given a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 11th. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.45%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on LUV. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Evercore upped their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $24.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Southwest Airlines from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $49.58.

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.