46,339 Shares in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV Bought by iSAM Funds UK Ltd

iSAM Funds UK Ltd acquired a new position in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 46,339 shares of the airline’s stock, valued at approximately $1,479,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LUV. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Corsicana & Co. acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines in the third quarter worth about $27,000. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines in the third quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Southwest Airlines during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 80.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Raymond James Financial upped their target price on Southwest Airlines from $42.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $37.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $29.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. BNP Paribas Exane upped their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $19.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $47.34.

Key Southwest Airlines News

Here are the key news stories impacting Southwest Airlines this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Unusual call buying — Traders purchased roughly 49,224 LUV calls (about a 104% jump vs. typical daily call volume), which suggests short-term bullish speculative activity or hedging that can support the share price.
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation pieces highlight recent share weakness and longer-term gains — Coverage notes LUV has declined in the past month and 3 months, prompting fresh valuation discussion even as 1‑year returns remain strong; these analyses may attract bargain hunters or prompt more selling depending on investor view. Assessing Southwest Airlines (LUV) Valuation After Recent Share Price Weakness
• Neutral Sentiment: Price-target and thematic pieces summarize street views for 2026 — Roundups of Wall Street price predictions and longer-term outlooks provide context but don’t move fundamentals immediately. Southwest Price Prediction: What Wall Street Thinks LUV Is Worth in 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Redburn raised its price target to $35 but kept a Sell rating — mixed signal: a higher target is constructive while the Sell stance keeps downside narrative alive. Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV) Target Increased to $35 at Redburn Despite Sell Rating
• Negative Sentiment: Southwest will end service at Chicago O’Hare and Washington Dulles — exits from two major airports shrink network reach and could reduce revenue or market share in those metros, raising near-term growth concerns. Southwest Airlines ends service to Chicago’s O’Hare and Washington’s Dulles airports Southwest Airlines to end service at O’Hare, Dulles
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst downgrades and lower earnings estimates — Jefferies cut its price target to $41 (Hold) and Zacks moved LUV from Strong‑Buy to Hold while trimming FY2028 EPS — these reduce analyst support and can pressure sentiment. Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Price Target Lowered to $41.00 at Jefferies Financial Group Zacks.com
• Negative Sentiment: Oil spike and geopolitical risk — Coverage warns that oil returning toward $100/barrel amid the Iran conflict materially raises jet fuel costs and could compress margins across carriers; sector pain can drag LUV despite company-specific factors. Airline Stocks Were Pricing 2026 Like A Runway―Oil Just Made It A Cliff Edge Only 3 U.S. Airlines Can Remain Profitable at Current Oil Prices
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term selling pressure — multiple outlets noted shares sliding last week/month and premarket weakness tied to oil and supply concerns, which can amplify short-term volatility. Why Is Southwest Airlines Stock Sliding Thursday?

Southwest Airlines Trading Up 0.4%

Southwest Airlines stock opened at $38.77 on Friday. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 1 year low of $23.82 and a 1 year high of $55.11. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $46.67 and its 200-day moving average is $38.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.52. The company has a market cap of $19.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.15, a PEG ratio of 0.28 and a beta of 1.10.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The airline reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $7.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.51 billion. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.57% and a return on equity of 6.18%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.56 EPS. Southwest Airlines has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.000- EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.450- EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 12th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 12th. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio is presently 85.71%.

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.