Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Stock Price Up 2.5% After Insider Buying Activity

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) shares were up 2.5% on Thursday after an insider bought additional shares in the company. The stock traded as high as $30.95 and last traded at $30.31. Approximately 1,414,422 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 9,534,279 shares. The stock had previously closed at $29.57.

Specifically, Director Rakesh Gangwal purchased 643,788 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $29.98 per share, for a total transaction of $19,300,764.24. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,606,311 shares in the company, valued at $108,117,203.78. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on LUV shares. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $19.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $29.00 price target (down from $32.00) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a report on Friday, July 26th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $30.00 to $35.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $29.00 to $28.25 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $20.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Four equities research 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $29.00.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $27.81 and its 200 day moving average is $27.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.94, a PEG ratio of 26.83 and a beta of 1.17.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The airline reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.07. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 5.92% and a net margin of 0.41%. The company had revenue of $7.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.32 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.09 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 0.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 4th were issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 4th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.37%. Southwest Airlines’s payout ratio is 114.29%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LUV. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. CVA Family Office LLC grew its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 179.5% during the 2nd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 1,034 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 664 shares in the last quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in Southwest Airlines in the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Mather Group LLC. purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines in the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

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.