Citigroup Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Stock Price

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) had its price target reduced by equities researchers at Citigroup from $30.00 to $23.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “sell” rating on the airline’s stock. Citigroup’s price target would suggest a potential downside of 11.01% from the company’s current price.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on LUV. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $35.00 to $32.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $31.00 price objective (down from $33.00) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Melius Research upgraded Southwest Airlines from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $28.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Southwest Airlines from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Melius upgraded Southwest Airlines from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.88.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

NYSE LUV opened at $25.85 on Monday. Southwest Airlines has a 52-week low of $23.58 and a 52-week high of $36.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.94. The company’s fifty day moving average is $30.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $31.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The airline reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.11. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 5.77% and a net margin of 1.69%. Equities research analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines will post 1.55 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southwest Airlines

In other Southwest Airlines news, Director C. David Cush purchased 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $30.03 per share, for a total transaction of $150,150.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 19,011 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $570,900.33. The trade was a 35.69 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. CWC Advisors LLC. increased its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. CWC Advisors LLC. now owns 13,310 shares of the airline’s stock worth $447,000 after acquiring an additional 311 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 41.1% in the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,184 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,116 shares of the airline’s stock worth $340,000 after buying an additional 369 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its position in Southwest Airlines by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 9,822 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $330,000 after buying an additional 369 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in Southwest Airlines by 22.1% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 2,161 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

About Southwest Airlines

Southwest Airlines Co operates as a passenger airline company that provides scheduled air transportation services in the United States and near-international markets. As of December 31, 2023, the company operated a total fleet of 817 Boeing 737 aircraft; and served 121 destinations in 42 states, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, as well as ten near-international countries, including Mexico, Jamaica, the Bahamas, Aruba, the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Belize, Cuba, the Cayman Islands, and Turks and Caicos.