Southwest Airlines Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:LUV)

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) saw some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders acquired 26,202 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 40% compared to the typical daily volume of 18,729 put options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group raised shares of Southwest Airlines from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $29.00 to $36.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Bank of America reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $31.00 price target (down from $33.00) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Melius upgraded Southwest Airlines from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $42.00 price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Argus raised Southwest Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $35.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $32.52.

Southwest Airlines Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of Southwest Airlines stock opened at $34.38 on Thursday. Southwest Airlines has a twelve month low of $23.58 and a twelve month high of $36.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The company’s 50 day moving average is $31.27 and its 200 day moving average is $31.48. The company has a market cap of $20.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.10.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The airline reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Southwest Airlines will post 1.55 EPS for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 12th. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 100.00%.

Insider Activity at Southwest Airlines

In other news, Director C. David Cush acquired 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $30.03 per share, with a total value of $150,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 19,011 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $570,900.33. This represents a 35.69 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LUV. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Southwest Airlines by 46.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 30,082,719 shares of the airline’s stock worth $932,894,000 after acquiring an additional 9,504,201 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 608.5% during the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 3,623,333 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $107,359,000 after purchasing an additional 3,111,946 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in Southwest Airlines by 1,327.7% in the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 2,840,529 shares of the airline’s stock worth $95,499,000 after buying an additional 2,641,564 shares in the last quarter. Sound Shore Management Inc. CT purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter worth about $85,262,000. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter worth about $57,724,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Airlines Company 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.