Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV Shares Sold by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans trimmed its position in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 32.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,524,323 shares of the airline’s stock after selling 737,661 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned 0.29% of Southwest Airlines worth $62,999,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 43.7% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,335,167 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $393,615,000 after acquiring an additional 3,753,183 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 13.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 12,218,086 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $389,879,000 after acquiring an additional 1,459,235 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 9.2% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,837,197 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $218,175,000 after acquiring an additional 577,326 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,425,339 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $141,213,000 after acquiring an additional 26,608 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 2,468.4% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 3,752,352 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $155,085,000 after acquiring an additional 3,606,255 shares during the period. 80.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

NYSE:LUV opened at $38.46 on Friday. Southwest Airlines Co. has a one year low of $28.98 and a one year high of $55.11. 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 firm has a market cap of $18.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.81, a PEG ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.12. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $39.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $40.83.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The airline reported $0.45 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 company had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.13) earnings per share. The firm’s 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. Research analysts expect that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 2.76 EPS for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 11th. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.45%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LUV has been the topic of several research reports. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Southwest Airlines from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Southwest Airlines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 14th. HSBC raised shares of Southwest Airlines from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their price target for the company from $24.40 to $36.10 in a report on Friday, April 24th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $42.00 to $40.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Southwest Airlines from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $44.11.

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.