DnB Asset Management AS Buys 27,520 Shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV)

DnB Asset Management AS increased its stake in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 22.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 147,565 shares of the airline’s stock after purchasing an additional 27,520 shares during the quarter. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $4,961,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 186.7% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 883 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 575 shares during the period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its position in Southwest Airlines by 41.1% in the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,184 shares of the airline’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares during the last quarter. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter valued at about $53,000. Institutional investors own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America restated an “underperform” rating and set a $31.00 target price (down from $33.00) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Barclays upped their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Raymond James lifted their target price on Southwest Airlines from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 30th. TD Cowen upped their price target on Southwest Airlines from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, UBS Group raised Southwest Airlines from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $29.00 to $36.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $32.54.

Insider Transactions at Southwest Airlines

In related news, Director C. David Cush purchased 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $30.03 per share, for a total transaction of $150,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 19,011 shares in the company, valued at approximately $570,900.33. The trade was a 35.69 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

NYSE:LUV opened at $33.58 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $31.33 and its 200 day moving average is $31.56. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 12 month low of $23.58 and a 12 month high of $36.12. The company has a market capitalization of $19.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.63, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The airline reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.11. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 5.77% and a net margin of 1.69%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be paid a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 12th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.14%. Southwest Airlines’s payout ratio is currently 100.00%.

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.