Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) saw a significant decrease in short interest in September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 43,280,000 shares, a decrease of 17.2% from the August 31st total of 52,240,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 10,160,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.3 days.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LUV traded down $0.40 during trading on Friday, reaching $29.53. 11,657,607 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,921,688. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. Southwest Airlines has a 52 week low of $21.91 and a 52 week high of $35.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.67 billion, a PE ratio of 46.87, a PEG ratio of 27.03 and a beta of 1.16. The company’s 50 day moving average is $27.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.87.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The airline reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.07. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 0.41% and a return on equity of 5.92%. The company had revenue of $7.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.32 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.09 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Southwest Airlines will post 0.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 4th were paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.44%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 4th. Southwest Airlines’s payout ratio is presently 114.29%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,789,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 45.4% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 46,678 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $1,349,000 after acquiring an additional 14,564 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 267,572 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $7,727,000 after acquiring an additional 10,280 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC grew its position in Southwest Airlines by 20.3% during the 4th quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 11,949 shares of the airline’s stock worth $345,000 after acquiring an additional 2,016 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp increased its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 11.8% in the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 281,017 shares of the airline’s stock worth $8,116,000 after purchasing an additional 29,571 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on LUV shares. BNP Paribas raised shares of Southwest Airlines to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Citigroup cut their target price on Southwest Airlines from $29.00 to $28.25 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $26.00 to $24.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 5th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $30.00 to $35.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, Melius reiterated a “sell” rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research note on Monday, June 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Southwest Airlines presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $28.38.

About Southwest Airlines

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.