Q1 2024 EPS Estimates for Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) Increased by Seaport Res Ptn

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) – Equities research analysts at Seaport Res Ptn boosted their Q1 2024 EPS estimates for shares of Southwest Airlines in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, April 8th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst D. Mckenzie now expects that the airline will post earnings of ($0.30) per share for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of ($0.50). The consensus estimate for Southwest Airlines’ current full-year earnings is $1.60 per share.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The airline reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.25. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 9.40% and a net margin of 1.91%. The firm had revenue of $6.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.75 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.38) earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis.

A number of other research firms have also commented on LUV. Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Evercore ISI reissued an “inline” rating and issued a $35.00 price target on shares of Southwest Airlines in a report on Tuesday, January 2nd. 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 report on Friday, January 26th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Southwest Airlines from an “underperform” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $20.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on Southwest Airlines from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $31.82.

Southwest Airlines Stock Down 3.8 %

Shares of NYSE LUV opened at $27.96 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $31.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $28.42. Southwest Airlines has a 52 week low of $21.91 and a 52 week high of $39.53. The company has a market cap of $16.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.27, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 374.0% in the fourth quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 858 shares of the airline’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 677 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 82.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 914 shares of the airline’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 414 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 6th were paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.58%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 5th. Southwest Airlines’s payout ratio is 96.00%.

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.