Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV – Get Free Report) 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 – Get Free Report) 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
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.
Read Our Latest Stock Report on LUV
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.
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