HighTower Advisors LLC Raises Position in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

HighTower Advisors LLC increased its stake in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 19.2% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 221,388 shares of the airline’s stock after purchasing an additional 35,732 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $11,384,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. SHP Wealth Management acquired a new position in Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, DV Equities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 80.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LUV opened at $38.69 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company has a market capitalization of $18.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.13. Southwest Airlines Co. has a twelve month low of $29.26 and a twelve month high of $55.11. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $44.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.28.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The airline reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.42. The firm had revenue of $8.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.58 billion. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 14.15% and a net margin of 2.78%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business 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. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 3.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be given a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 3rd. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.17%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on LUV. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $56.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Southwest Airlines from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $53.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 24th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $55.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Southwest Airlines has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $49.01.

Southwest Airlines Profile

Southwest Airlines Co is a major U.S. passenger airline headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Operating under the Southwest Airlines brand, the company provides scheduled air transportation for domestic and international travelers and also offers air cargo services.

Southwest was founded in 1967 and began commercial service in 1971, initially connecting Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. The airline expanded its network across the United States and now serves numerous destinations in the United States, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America and other nearby international markets.