Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Price Target Lowered to $49.00 at UBS Group

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) had its price objective decreased by equities research analysts at UBS Group from $56.00 to $49.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the airline’s stock. UBS Group’s price target indicates a potential upside of 27.54% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Southwest Airlines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $60.00 to $59.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Barclays raised their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $56.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Evercore upped their target price on Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $48.41.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

LUV stock traded down $0.26 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $38.42. The company had a trading volume of 315,436 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,541,734. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $44.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $43.28. The company has a market capitalization of $18.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.55, a P/E/G ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.13. Southwest Airlines has a 1 year low of $29.26 and a 1 year high of $55.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.49 and a quick ratio of 0.42.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The airline reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.42. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 2.78% and a return on equity of 14.15%. The company had revenue of $8.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.58 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.43 EPS. 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, research analysts anticipate that Southwest Airlines will post 3.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Primecap Management Co. CA purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the second quarter worth $2,509,179,000. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,538,382,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Southwest Airlines in the 2nd quarter worth $234,872,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in Southwest Airlines in the 4th quarter worth $172,038,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position 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 worth $1,661,488,000 after purchasing an additional 2,626,853 shares during the period. 80.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.