Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Price Target Raised to $31.00 at Jefferies Financial Group

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group has raised Southwest Airlines' price target to $31.00, indicating a potential downside of 2.85% from its previous close.
• Southwest Airlines reported earnings per share of $0.43 for the latest quarter, missing estimates by $0.08, and experienced a 2.1% decline in year-over-year revenue.
• The company has initiated a $2.00 billion share buyback program, allowing it to repurchase up to 9.4% of its outstanding shares, reflecting confidence in its stock value.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV - Get Free Report) had its price target lifted by equities research analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from $30.00 to $31.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "hold" rating on the airline's stock. Jefferies Financial Group's price objective points to a potential downside of 2.85% from the stock's previous close.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Southwest Airlines from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. UBS Group upped their target price on Southwest Airlines from $27.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Southwest Airlines from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Monday. Barclays upped their target price on Southwest Airlines from $26.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their target price on Southwest Airlines from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $33.31.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

NYSE:LUV remained flat at $31.91 during trading hours on Wednesday. The company had a trading volume of 506,966 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,239,922. The company has a market cap of $16.76 billion, a PE ratio of 48.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. Southwest Airlines has a twelve month low of $23.82 and a twelve month high of $37.96. The business's 50 day moving average is $31.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $31.53.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The airline reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.51 by ($0.08). Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 6.27% and a net margin of 1.43%.The company had revenue of $7.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.58 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Southwest Airlines will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, July 23rd that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the airline to buy up to 9.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Sarah Feinberg bought 1,500 shares of Southwest Airlines stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $30.01 per share, with a total value of $45,015.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 14,229 shares in the company, valued at $427,012.29. The trade was a 11.78% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gregg A. Saretsky bought 3,345 shares of Southwest Airlines stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $30.03 per share, for a total transaction of $100,450.35. Following the purchase, the director owned 23,644 shares of the company's stock, valued at $710,029.32. The trade was a 16.48% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.79% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Southwest Airlines

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Stance Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the second quarter worth about $294,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 28.6% in the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 11,720 shares of the airline's stock worth $380,000 after purchasing an additional 2,610 shares during the last quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the second quarter worth about $50,000. Rexford Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the second quarter worth about $433,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 87.1% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 29,863 shares of the airline's stock worth $969,000 after buying an additional 13,901 shares during the period. 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.

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