Needham Investment Management LLC Sells 15,400 Shares of Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

Needham Investment Management LLC lessened its position in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 43.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 19,850 shares of the airline’s stock after selling 15,400 shares during the period. Needham Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $820,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 28.5% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 915 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 21,148 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $843,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 3,063 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $127,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 16,437 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $682,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Transcend Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 6,726 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $278,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

Shares of LUV opened at $47.47 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 1 year low of $28.98 and a 1 year high of $55.11. The stock has a market cap of $23.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.15. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $40.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $42.46.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The airline reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 10.66% and a net margin of 2.83%.The firm had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.13) earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Southwest Airlines has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.350-0.650 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 11th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.45%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on LUV. HSBC upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $24.40 to $36.10 in a research note on Friday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their target price on Southwest Airlines from $27.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $44.56.

Southwest Airlines Company 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.