U S Global Investors Inc. Trims Holdings in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

U S Global Investors Inc. lessened its stake in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 20.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,668,355 shares of the airline’s stock after selling 438,970 shares during the quarter. Southwest Airlines makes up about 7.3% of U S Global Investors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position. U S Global Investors Inc.’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $62,680,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of LUV. SHP Wealth Management bought a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Entrust Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, Optima Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Institutional investors own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Southwest Airlines from $45.00 to $58.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Raymond James Financial raised their price target on Southwest Airlines from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Evercore lifted their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. BNP Paribas Exane upped their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $24.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $49.58.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LUV traded down $0.71 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $48.51. 4,912,547 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,357,558. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.48 and a quick ratio of 0.41. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 1 year low of $28.98 and a 1 year high of $55.11. The company’s 50-day moving average is $44.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.86. The company has a market capitalization of $23.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.30, a PEG ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 1.12.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The airline reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.45. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 10.66% and a net margin of 2.83%.The company had revenue of $7.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($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. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 3.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 11th were issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 11th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Southwest Airlines’s payout ratio is 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.