Blueshift Asset Management LLC Has $896,000 Stock Position in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

Blueshift Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 169.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 27,618 shares of the airline’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,373 shares during the quarter. Blueshift Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $896,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Southwest Airlines during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the second quarter worth $31,000. Pandora Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the first quarter worth $34,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in Southwest Airlines by 81.4% during the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,056 shares of the airline’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 474 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cheviot Value Management LLC acquired a new position in Southwest Airlines in the first quarter valued at $42,000. 80.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

NYSE LUV opened at $34.76 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $32.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $32.57. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 52-week low of $23.82 and a 52-week high of $37.96. The company has a market capitalization of $17.98 billion, a PE ratio of 53.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.49.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The airline reported ($0.38) EPS for the quarter. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.38% and a return on equity of 6.39%. The business had revenue of $6.17 billion for the quarter. On average, research analysts predict that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 1.55 EPS for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 26th will be given a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 26th. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 110.77%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on LUV shares. UBS Group decreased their price target on Southwest Airlines from $35.00 to $33.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on Southwest Airlines from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 20th. Wall Street Zen raised Southwest Airlines from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 25th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $33.80.

Southwest Airlines Profile

Southwest Airlines Co operates as a passenger airline company that provides scheduled air transportation services in the United States and near-international markets. As of December 31, 2023, the company operated a total fleet of 817 Boeing 737 aircraft; and served 121 destinations in 42 states, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, as well as ten near-international countries, including Mexico, Jamaica, the Bahamas, Aruba, the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Belize, Cuba, the Cayman Islands, and Turks and Caicos.