Kiltearn Partners LLP Invests $31.86 Million in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

Kiltearn Partners LLP bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor bought 619,627 shares of the airline’s stock, valued at approximately $31,861,000. Southwest Airlines comprises about 7.7% of Kiltearn Partners LLP’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Southwest Airlines by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 40,200,530 shares of the airline’s stock worth $1,661,488,000 after purchasing an additional 2,626,853 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Southwest Airlines during the second quarter valued at $1,538,382,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Southwest Airlines by 9.2% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,837,197 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $218,175,000 after purchasing an additional 577,326 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,228,475 shares of the airline’s stock worth $257,423,000 after buying an additional 244,891 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,763,154 shares of the airline’s stock worth $216,472,000 after buying an additional 117,833 shares in the last quarter. 80.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Southwest Airlines Stock Up 1.3%

NYSE LUV opened at $40.41 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company has a fifty day moving average of $47.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $44.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.79, a PEG ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.14. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 52 week low of $29.26 and a 52 week high of $55.11.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The airline reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.42. The business had revenue of $8.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.58 billion. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 2.78% and a return on equity of 14.15%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.43 earnings per share. 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. On average, analysts predict that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 3.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

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 issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 3rd. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio is presently 44.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $53.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Southwest Airlines from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Southwest Airlines from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.55.

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.