Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Trims Position in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 93.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,022 shares of the airline’s stock after selling 95,012 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $290,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cibc World Market Inc. grew its stake in Southwest Airlines by 12.6% in the third quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 1,916,003 shares of the airline’s stock worth $61,140,000 after purchasing an additional 214,092 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in Southwest Airlines by 2,468.4% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 3,752,352 shares of the airline’s stock worth $155,085,000 after purchasing an additional 3,606,255 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter worth $31,968,000. North Dakota State Investment Board purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter worth $2,189,000. Finally, Altfest L J & Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter worth $1,403,000. 80.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on LUV. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Southwest Airlines from $42.00 to $37.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 27th. Zacks Research downgraded Southwest Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Susquehanna dropped their target price on Southwest Airlines from $55.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on Southwest Airlines from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane boosted their target price on Southwest Airlines from $24.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $43.96.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

Shares of LUV opened at $42.98 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.59. The stock has a market cap of $21.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.73, a PEG ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 1.15. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 52 week low of $28.98 and a 52 week high of $55.11.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The airline reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 10.66% and a net margin of 2.83%.The business had revenue of $7.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.46 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.13) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. Southwest Airlines has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.350-0.650 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 2.81 EPS for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 11th. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.