Brokerages Set Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) PT at $44.11

Shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty-two analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have issued a hold recommendation and nine have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $44.1050.

Several equities analysts recently commented on LUV shares. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Southwest Airlines from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $59.00 to $56.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $42.00 to $40.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Southwest Airlines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane increased their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $24.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. SHP Wealth Management purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. 80.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

Shares of Southwest Airlines stock opened at $38.33 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.73, a PEG ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $39.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $40.94. Southwest Airlines has a 52 week low of $28.98 and a 52 week high of $55.11.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The airline reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.45. The firm had revenue of $7.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.46 billion. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 10.66%. Southwest Airlines’s revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.13) EPS. Southwest Airlines has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.350-0.650 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Southwest Airlines will post 2.76 EPS for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 11th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 11th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.45%.

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.