Zacks Research Issues Pessimistic Forecast for LUV Earnings

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV - Free Report) - Equities research analysts at Zacks Research cut their FY2025 EPS estimates for shares of Southwest Airlines in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, May 7th. Zacks Research analyst S. Goswami now forecasts that the airline will earn $1.41 per share for the year, down from their previous estimate of $1.51. The consensus estimate for Southwest Airlines' current full-year earnings is $1.55 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Southwest Airlines' Q1 2027 earnings at $0.37 EPS.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The airline reported ($0.13) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.18) by $0.05. The business had revenue of $6.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.47 billion. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.69% and a return on equity of 5.77%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.36) EPS.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Argus raised shares of Southwest Airlines from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $35.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Melius raised shares of Southwest Airlines from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $23.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Southwest Airlines from a "hold" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $28.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $34.00 to $25.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $30.59.

Southwest Airlines Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of Southwest Airlines stock traded up $0.40 during trading on Monday, hitting $32.25. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,739,474 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,012,099. Southwest Airlines has a 52 week low of $23.58 and a 52 week high of $36.12. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $29.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $31.06. The company has a market capitalization of $18.38 billion, a PE ratio of 44.81, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.92.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 186.7% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 883 shares of the airline's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 575 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. lifted its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 196.3% during the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. now owns 889 shares of the airline's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 589 shares during the last quarter. Pandora Wealth Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the first quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. 80.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southwest Airlines

In related news, Director David P. Hess purchased 7,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 28th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $26.52 per share, for a total transaction of $198,900.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 23,156 shares in the company, valued at approximately $614,097.12. This trade represents a 47.90% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gregg A. Saretsky purchased 3,670 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 30th. The stock was bought at an average price of $27.29 per share, for a total transaction of $100,154.30. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 14,881 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $406,102.49. The trade was a 32.74% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought 16,670 shares of company stock worth $464,944 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.79% of the company's stock.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 18th. Southwest Airlines's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 84.71%.

About Southwest Airlines

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.