Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the twenty-two analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $48.3050.

Several brokerages have commented on LUV. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $65.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $56.00 to $49.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th.

Southwest Airlines Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:LUV opened at $42.18 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $43.03 and a 200-day moving average of $42.68. Southwest Airlines has a 52-week low of $29.26 and a 52-week high of $55.11. The company has a market capitalization of $20.64 billion, a PE ratio of 25.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.49.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The airline reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.42. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 14.15% and a net margin of 2.78%.The company had revenue of $8.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.43 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Southwest Airlines has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.250-4.250 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.500-0.750 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Southwest Airlines will post 3.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 3rd. Southwest Airlines’s payout ratio is currently 44.17%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Primecap Management Co. CA acquired a new position in Southwest Airlines in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,509,179,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 40,200,530 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $1,661,488,000 after acquiring an additional 2,626,853 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,538,382,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 2.1% during 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. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 2nd quarter valued at $234,872,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Airlines Company Profile

Southwest Airlines Co is a major U.S. passenger airline headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Operating under the Southwest Airlines brand, the company provides scheduled air transportation for domestic and international travelers and also offers air cargo services.

Southwest was founded in 1967 and began commercial service in 1971, initially connecting Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. The airline expanded its network across the United States and now serves numerous destinations in the United States, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America and other nearby international markets.