iA Global Asset Management Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

iA Global Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 300.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,404 shares of the airline’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,561 shares during the quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $579,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of LUV. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 100.6% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 39,347 shares of the airline’s stock worth $1,303,000 after buying an additional 19,729 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 5.4% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 61,060 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $2,050,000 after purchasing an additional 3,141 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in Southwest Airlines by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 7,459 shares of the airline’s stock worth $250,000 after purchasing an additional 527 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 73.4% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,690 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $185,000 after buying an additional 2,408 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 47.4% in the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 307,602 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $9,979,000 after buying an additional 98,986 shares during the period. 80.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on LUV shares. Evercore raised their target price on Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $52.00 in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $24.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $55.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $48.43.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

NYSE:LUV opened at $50.21 on Friday. 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 company has a fifty day moving average of $43.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $43.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.54 billion, a PE ratio of 32.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.12. Southwest Airlines Co. has a fifty-two week low of $28.98 and a fifty-two week high of $55.11.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The airline reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.45. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 10.66%. The business had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.13) earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Southwest Airlines has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.350-0.650 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 2.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, June 11th were paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 11th. Southwest Airlines’s dividend 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.