Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Stock Price Expected to Rise, TD Cowen Analyst Says

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) had its price objective lifted by equities research analysts at TD Cowen from $21.00 to $24.00 in a report issued on Friday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has a “hold” rating on the airline’s stock. TD Cowen’s price target would indicate a potential downside of 26.29% from the company’s current price.

LUV has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines to a “moderate sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $26.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $33.38.

Southwest Airlines Stock Up 0.8%

Southwest Airlines stock opened at $32.56 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $17.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.21. Southwest Airlines has a 1-year low of $23.82 and a 1-year high of $37.96. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $31.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The airline reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $7.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.30 billion. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.43% and a return on equity of 6.27%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.58 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Southwest Airlines will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the airline to reacquire up to 9.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Southwest Airlines

In related news, Director Sarah Feinberg bought 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $30.01 per share, for a total transaction of $45,015.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 14,229 shares in the company, valued at $427,012.29. This represents a 11.78% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gregg A. Saretsky bought 3,345 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $30.03 per share, with a total value of $100,450.35. Following the purchase, the director owned 23,644 shares in the company, valued at $710,029.32. The trade was a 16.48% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Southwest Airlines

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LUV. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Southwest Airlines by 3,538.6% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 326,129 shares of the airline’s stock worth $10,951,000 after purchasing an additional 317,166 shares in the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the 1st quarter worth about $212,000. OLD National Bancorp IN raised its stake in Southwest Airlines by 26.0% in the 1st quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 11,644 shares of the airline’s stock worth $391,000 after purchasing an additional 2,406 shares in the last quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in Southwest Airlines by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 22,428 shares of the airline’s stock worth $753,000 after purchasing an additional 693 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CX Institutional acquired a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the 1st quarter worth about $369,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.