The Goldman Sachs Group Cuts Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Price Target to $30.00

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) had its price objective dropped by The Goldman Sachs Group from $32.00 to $30.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has a “sell” rating on the airline’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s target price suggests a potential downside of 21.19% from the stock’s current price.

LUV has been the subject of a number of other research reports. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $19.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Zacks Research downgraded Southwest Airlines from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. UBS Group cut their target price on Southwest Airlines from $59.00 to $56.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $36.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $66.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 9th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $44.94.

Southwest Airlines Stock Up 1.3%

LUV traded up $0.49 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $38.06. 4,730,546 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,096,475. The firm has a market cap of $18.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.27 and a beta of 1.10. Southwest Airlines has a 12-month low of $23.82 and a 12-month high of $55.11. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $45.80 and a 200 day moving average of $39.36.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last issued 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 net margin of 1.57% and a return on equity of 6.18%. The company had revenue of $7.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.56 EPS. The firm’s 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. Analysts predict that Southwest Airlines will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 28.5% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 915 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 21,148 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $843,000 after buying an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its position in Southwest Airlines by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 3,063 shares of the airline’s stock worth $127,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Southwest Airlines by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 16,437 shares of the airline’s stock worth $682,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Transcend Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 6,726 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $278,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares during the period. 80.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southwest Airlines Company Profile

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.