Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Price Target Raised to $51.00 at UBS Group

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) had its price objective lifted by UBS Group from $45.00 to $51.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the airline’s stock.

Several other analysts also recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Southwest Airlines from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 25th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Southwest Airlines in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Southwest Airlines from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. Bank of America boosted their price target on Southwest Airlines from $37.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Barclays raised Southwest Airlines from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $34.00 to $56.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.24.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

Shares of LUV stock opened at $49.63 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $25.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.08, a P/E/G ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 1.16. Southwest Airlines has a 1-year low of $23.82 and a 1-year high of $49.85. 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 stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $41.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $35.27.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The airline reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.02. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.57% and a return on equity of 6.18%. The firm had revenue of $7.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.51 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.56 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. Southwest Airlines has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.000- EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.450- EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Southwest Airlines will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 26th were issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 26th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio is 85.71%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in LUV. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Southwest Airlines during the second quarter worth about $25,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Southwest Airlines in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Corsicana & Co. bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Optima Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Southwest Airlines

Here are the key news stories impacting Southwest Airlines this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks and other outlets added LUV to top momentum/strong-buy lists, highlighting improved style scores and momentum that could attract ETF/quant and retail flows. Zacks Momentum Article
• Positive Sentiment: UBS raised its price target to $51 (keeps a neutral rating) — a technical upward re-rate that supports near-term upside expectations. UBS PT Raise
• Positive Sentiment: BMO Capital Markets upgraded LUV, a credible institutional signal that helped lift sentiment after the firm highlighted operational/earnings recovery prospects. BMO Upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Unusual options activity: traders bought ~52,057 call contracts (≈94% above average), indicating aggressive bullish positioning or hedging ahead of catalysts.
• Positive Sentiment: Barchart and other coverage noted the stock’s recent sharp gain and called it the best-performing day since 1978, framing LUV as a turnaround candidate for 2026. Barchart Turnaround Piece
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple price-target changes were reported across outlets (American Banking News noted several raises to varying levels), showing analyst attention but mixed absolute targets; impacts depend on which firm’s view investors follow. Price Target Reports
• Negative Sentiment: Jefferies lifted its target to $48 but kept a “hold” rating — that target sits below the current trading level, signaling some analyst caution and a potential cap on upside. Jefferies PT

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.