Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Given New $25.00 Price Target at Susquehanna

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV - Get Free Report) had its price target decreased by analysts at Susquehanna from $27.00 to $25.00 in a report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "neutral" rating on the airline's stock. Susquehanna's price objective would suggest a potential downside of 3.62% from the stock's previous close.

Several other research firms have also commented on LUV. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $24.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Argus raised shares of Southwest Airlines from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $40.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 12th. Evercore ISI reiterated an "inline" rating and set a $35.00 price target on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $36.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $26.00 to $32.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $30.59.

Southwest Airlines Stock Down 3.4 %

Shares of LUV traded down $0.90 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $25.94. 13,825,093 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,929,340. The firm has a market cap of $15.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.17, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.15. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $30.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $28.58. Southwest Airlines has a 12-month low of $21.91 and a 12-month high of $39.53. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The airline reported ($0.36) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.34) by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $6.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.42 billion. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.59% and a return on equity of 8.91%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.27) EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Southwest Airlines will post 1.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Southwest Airlines

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norden Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 29.8% in the 1st quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 19,457 shares of the airline's stock valued at $568,000 after acquiring an additional 4,469 shares during the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust grew its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 16.1% in the 1st quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 9,185 shares of the airline's stock valued at $268,000 after purchasing an additional 1,271 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 682,512 shares of the airline's stock valued at $19,923,000 after purchasing an additional 10,562 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. grew its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 25.6% in the 1st quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 23,070 shares of the airline's stock valued at $673,000 after purchasing an additional 4,705 shares during the period. Finally, Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,760,000. 80.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Southwest Airlines Company Profile

Southwest Airlines Co operates as a passenger airline company that provides scheduled air transportation services in the United States and near-international markets. As of December 31, 2023, the company operated a total fleet of 817 Boeing 737 aircraft; and served 121 destinations in 42 states, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, as well as ten near-international countries, including Mexico, Jamaica, the Bahamas, Aruba, the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Belize, Cuba, the Cayman Islands, and Turks and Caicos.