Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Price Target Raised to $60.00 at Raymond James Financial

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) had its price target lifted by investment analysts at Raymond James Financial from $55.00 to $60.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the airline’s stock. Raymond James Financial’s target price indicates a potential upside of 19.50% from the company’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on LUV. Argus cut their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $55.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 24th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $47.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. HSBC upgraded Southwest Airlines from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the company from $24.40 to $36.10 in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $55.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $48.68.

Southwest Airlines Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of LUV opened at $50.21 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $43.34 and its 200 day moving average price is $43.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Southwest Airlines has a 12-month low of $28.98 and a 12-month high of $55.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.12.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The airline reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 10.66% and a net margin of 2.83%.The business had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.46 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.13) earnings per share. Southwest Airlines’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. Southwest Airlines has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.350-0.650 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Southwest Airlines will post 3.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LUV. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 7.0% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 40,200,530 shares of the airline’s stock worth $1,661,488,000 after purchasing an additional 2,626,853 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 43.7% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,335,167 shares of the airline’s stock worth $393,615,000 after buying an additional 3,753,183 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 9.2% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,837,197 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $218,175,000 after acquiring an additional 577,326 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,228,475 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $257,423,000 after acquiring an additional 244,891 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,763,154 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $216,472,000 after acquiring an additional 117,833 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

About Southwest Airlines

Southwest Airlines Co is a U.S.-based low-cost carrier that operates a point-to-point domestic and near-international airline network. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company primarily flies Boeing 737 aircraft and offers no-frills, single-class service designed to keep fares competitive. Southwest’s operating model emphasizes high aircraft utilization, quick turnaround times and an open seating policy, allowing customers to board and select seats on a first-come, first-served basis.

Founded in 1967 by Herb Kelleher and Rollin King as Air Southwest Company, Southwest began commercial service in 1971, initially connecting Dallas, Houston and San Antonio.