Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Price Target Raised to $32.00 at The Goldman Sachs Group

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) had its price objective boosted by The Goldman Sachs Group from $29.00 to $32.00 in a research note released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a sell rating on the airline’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also commented on LUV. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $40.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Southwest Airlines from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $36.00 to $60.00 in a report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Southwest Airlines presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $44.76.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

Shares of LUV opened at $47.51 on Friday. Southwest Airlines has a 52 week low of $23.82 and a 52 week high of $49.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.52. The company has a market capitalization of $24.57 billion, a PE ratio of 56.56, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.16. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $40.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $35.21.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The airline reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.02. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 6.18% and a net margin of 1.57%.The business had revenue of $7.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.56 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Southwest Airlines has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.000- EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.450- EPS. Research analysts expect that Southwest Airlines will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 26th were paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 26th. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.71%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LUV. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in Southwest Airlines by 2,403.8% during the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 10,120,368 shares of the airline’s stock worth $328,305,000 after purchasing an additional 9,716,160 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in Southwest Airlines by 43.7% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,335,167 shares of the airline’s stock worth $393,615,000 after purchasing an additional 3,753,183 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 2,468.4% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 3,752,352 shares of the airline’s stock worth $155,085,000 after buying an additional 3,606,255 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter worth $143,450,000. Finally, CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. bought a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 3rd quarter worth about $62,340,000. Institutional investors own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

More Southwest Airlines News

Here are the key news stories impacting Southwest Airlines this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Management issued robust FY‑2026 guidance (at least $4.00 adjusted EPS) and signaled material upside from new seat/ancillary fees — the guidance and new revenue levers are the main driver of recent upside. Q4 Earnings Highlights
• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat EPS estimates ($0.58 vs. $0.56) which reinforced confidence in the recovery and margin improvement. Earnings Beat
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple bullish analyst moves raised upside expectations — Morgan Stanley to $55 (overweight), BMO upgraded to outperform with $57.50, Wells Fargo and TD Cowen lifted targets toward $50 — these upgrades support the stock’s upside narrative. Analyst Coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry and stock‑screen pieces (Zacks, Seeking Alpha) compare LUV to peers and discuss valuation; helpful for context but less likely to drive immediate moves. Peer Comparison
• Negative Sentiment: Near‑term guidance is mixed: Q1 EPS guidance of ~$0.45 came in below Street estimates, and revenue trends in the quarter lagged expectations — a near‑term headwind for sentiment. Guidance & Results
• Negative Sentiment: Some large firms remain bearish or cautious despite raising targets — Goldman Sachs raised its PT to $32 but maintains a “sell” rating, and Bank of America kept an “underperform” stance with a $42 PT — these lower‑PT calls can cap rallies and prompt profit‑taking. Goldman / BofA Notes

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.