Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV Shares Sold by Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc.

Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. reduced its position in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 830,605 shares of the airline’s stock after selling 32,740 shares during the quarter. Southwest Airlines comprises about 1.4% of Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $42,710,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. North Dakota State Investment Board purchased a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter worth about $2,189,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 954.1% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 127,331 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $4,784,000 after buying an additional 115,251 shares during the period. Gradient Investments LLC raised its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 19.3% in the second quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 539,612 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $27,747,000 after buying an additional 87,146 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Southwest Airlines by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 575,639 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $23,774,000 after buying an additional 31,128 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio lifted its position in Southwest Airlines by 250.1% during the fourth quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 39,437 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $1,630,000 after buying an additional 28,172 shares in the last quarter. 80.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southwest Airlines Stock Down 0.2%

NYSE LUV opened at $39.70 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $19.42 billion, a PE ratio of 24.36, a P/E/G ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.14. Southwest Airlines Co. has a fifty-two week low of $29.26 and a fifty-two week high of $55.11. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $46.59 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $44.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The airline reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.42. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 2.78% and a return on equity of 14.15%. The company had revenue of $8.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.43 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. Southwest Airlines has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.250-4.250 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.500-0.750 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 3.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 3rd. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Southwest Airlines’s payout ratio is 44.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LUV has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $60.00 to $59.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Raymond James Financial reduced their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $60.00 to $54.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 24th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Southwest Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 5th. Zacks Research upgraded Southwest Airlines from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Evercore increased their price target on Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $52.00 in a report on Thursday, June 25th. 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $49.01.

About Southwest Airlines

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.