Barclays Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Stock

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV - Free Report) had its price objective raised by Barclays from $26.00 to $34.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the airline's stock.

LUV has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Southwest Airlines from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $40.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Melius raised shares of Southwest Airlines from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $27.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $23.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $32.81.

Southwest Airlines Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of LUV traded down $0.22 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $37.13. The stock had a trading volume of 10,373,601 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,313,487. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $32.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $31.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.24 and a beta of 1.21. Southwest Airlines has a 1-year low of $23.58 and a 1-year high of $37.85.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The airline reported ($0.13) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.18) by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $6.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.47 billion. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.98% and a return on equity of 7.27%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.36) EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Southwest Airlines will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th were issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. Southwest Airlines's dividend payout ratio is currently 84.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Gregg A. Saretsky bought 3,670 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $27.29 per share, for a total transaction of $100,154.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 14,881 shares in the company, valued at $406,102.49. This trade represents a 32.74% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director David P. Hess bought 7,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 28th. The stock was bought at an average price of $26.52 per share, for a total transaction of $198,900.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 23,156 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $614,097.12. This trade represents a 47.90% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.79% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Southwest Airlines by 9.6% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 32,978,869 shares of the airline's stock worth $1,108,750,000 after buying an additional 2,896,150 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 1,327.7% in the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 2,840,529 shares of the airline's stock worth $95,499,000 after acquiring an additional 2,641,564 shares during the period. Sound Shore Management Inc. CT purchased a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter worth $85,262,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 66.0% in the 4th quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 6,014,828 shares of the airline's stock worth $202,219,000 after acquiring an additional 2,391,495 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Southwest Airlines during the fourth quarter worth about $57,724,000. 80.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.