Wedbush Securities Inc. Sells 702 Shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV)

Wedbush Securities Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 8.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,834 shares of the airline’s stock after selling 702 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $224,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in Southwest Airlines during the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. CVA Family Office LLC increased its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 179.5% during the second quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 1,034 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 664 shares during the period. Pineridge Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Southwest Airlines during the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

LUV opened at $28.68 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $27.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $28.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.18 billion, a PE ratio of 45.52, a P/E/G ratio of 27.22 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 12-month low of $21.91 and a 12-month high of $35.18.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The airline reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $7.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.32 billion. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 0.41% and a return on equity of 5.92%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.09 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 0.23 EPS for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 4th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.51%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 4th. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 114.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays boosted their price target on Southwest Airlines from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Melius restated a “sell” rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of Southwest Airlines in a report on Monday, June 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $26.00 to $24.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating and issued a $29.00 target price (down from $32.00) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Argus reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research report on Tuesday, May 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $28.38.

Southwest Airlines Company 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.