Brevan Howard Capital Management LP Trims Holdings in Southwest Airlines Co. $LUV

Brevan Howard Capital Management LP reduced its stake in Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) by 45.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 105,327 shares of the airline’s stock after selling 86,379 shares during the quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP’s holdings in Southwest Airlines were worth $3,361,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in LUV. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in Southwest Airlines by 43.7% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,335,167 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $393,615,000 after purchasing an additional 3,753,183 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 13.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 12,218,086 shares of the airline’s stock worth $389,879,000 after buying an additional 1,459,235 shares during the period. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership grew its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 0.9% in the second quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 10,763,935 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $349,182,000 after buying an additional 98,290 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 2,403.8% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 10,120,368 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $328,305,000 after buying an additional 9,716,160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings 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 buying an additional 577,326 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

Shares of Southwest Airlines stock opened at $40.18 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. Southwest Airlines Co. has a 52 week low of $23.82 and a 52 week high of $55.11. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $46.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.84, a P/E/G ratio of 0.28 and a beta of 1.10.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The airline reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $7.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.56 EPS. Southwest Airlines has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.000- EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.450- EPS. Research analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines Co. will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 12th will be paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 12th. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 85.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research note on Monday, December 29th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $43.00 to $57.50 in a research note on Friday, January 30th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $66.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $37.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.29.

Key Stories Impacting Southwest Airlines

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

• Positive Sentiment: UBS lowered its price target on LUV to $59 but kept a “buy” rating, noting upside from current levels; the note supports constructive sentiment despite the cut. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: UBS says US airline stocks may be near a bottom even after recent declines and expects many carriers to hit the midpoint of Q1 guidance, which helps sector-wide sentiment. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: A short-term sector rebound — airlines rallied after two rough weeks when jet fuel spiked — is lifting peers including LUV. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Airline CEOs urged Congress to end a government shutdown to avoid travel disruptions over spring break — this is an industry-wide operational risk rather than a Southwest-specific issue. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: UBS cut price targets and estimates across its U.S. airline coverage, citing “significant uncertainty” around fuel costs and 2026 outlook — a headwind for valuation and analyst sentiment. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo trimmed its LUV target from $50 to $44 and moved to an “equal weight” rating, reducing near-term upside expectations. Read More. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Southwest will stop flying to Chicago O’Hare and Washington Dulles starting June 4, a network change that could lower revenue from those markets and upset some customers. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Longtime flyers are publicly reacting negatively to changes in Southwest’s A-List benefits, signaling potential customer-satisfaction and loyalty risks. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research has issued negative earnings estimates for LUV, adding downward pressure to near-term expectations. Read More.

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.