Delta Global Management LP Lowers Holdings in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

Delta Global Management LP decreased its holdings in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 23.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 59,186 shares of the airline’s stock after selling 17,690 shares during the quarter. Delta Global Management LP’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $2,446,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in LUV. MCF Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 28.5% in the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 915 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors raised its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 21,148 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $843,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 3,063 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $127,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 16,437 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $682,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Transcend Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 6,726 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $278,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on LUV shares. Evercore raised their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $43.00 to $44.00 in a report on Friday, April 24th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $54.00 to $44.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $50.00 to $44.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 16th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $44.21.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

Shares of LUV opened at $46.10 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.74, a P/E/G ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.15. The company’s fifty day moving average is $40.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $42.38. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 1 year low of $28.98 and a 1 year high of $55.11.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The airline reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.45. The company had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.46 billion. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 10.66%. Southwest Airlines’s revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.13) EPS. Southwest Airlines has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.350-0.650 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 11th will be paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 11th. Southwest Airlines’s payout ratio is currently 46.45%.

Southwest Airlines Profile

Southwest Airlines Co is a U.S.-based low-cost carrier that operates a point-to-point domestic and near-international airline network. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company primarily flies Boeing 737 aircraft and offers no-frills, single-class service designed to keep fares competitive. Southwest’s operating model emphasizes high aircraft utilization, quick turnaround times and an open seating policy, allowing customers to board and select seats on a first-come, first-served basis.

Founded in 1967 by Herb Kelleher and Rollin King as Air Southwest Company, Southwest began commercial service in 1971, initially connecting Dallas, Houston and San Antonio.