Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Hits New 52-Week High on Analyst Upgrade

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday after Susquehanna raised their price target on the stock from $45.00 to $55.00. Susquehanna currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Southwest Airlines traded as high as $51.21 and last traded at $51.1840, with a volume of 10882626 shares. The stock had previously closed at $49.64.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on LUV. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $42.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Raymond James Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $42.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Seaport Research Partners increased their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $57.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.76.

Key Stories Impacting Southwest Airlines

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 EPS beat and full-year guidance — Southwest reported Q4 EPS of $0.58, beating estimates, and set FY2026 guidance that implies stronger profitability, supporting investor optimism. Southwest Airlines (LUV) Posts $7.4B Revenue for Q4 2025 as EPS Beats Guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Seating and fee overhaul aimed at higher unit revenue — Management is overhauling seating and ancillary fees to lift per-passenger revenue and profit targets for 2026, a structural move investors view as earnings-accretive. Southwest Overhauls Seating And Fees As Profit Targets Soar For 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst target uplifts and upgrades — Susquehanna raised its price target to $55 (neutral rating) and BMO upgraded the stock, signaling buy-side support for the recovery narrative. These actions help underpin the stock’s rally. Benzinga coverage of analyst moves Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Upgraded at BMO Capital Markets
• Positive Sentiment: Unusual call buying and momentum rankings — Heavy call-option activity and multiple Zacks momentum/strong-buy listings have attracted speculative and momentum buyers. Best Momentum Stocks to Buy for February 2nd
• Neutral Sentiment: Promotional marketing (free-flights) — Southwest is running a limited-time free-flights promotion that should lift bookings/PR but could pressure near-term unit revenues; impact depends on scale and duration. Southwest Airlines brings back free flights—limited-time
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst stance — Several firms raised price targets (UBS, Jefferies, others) but maintained neutral/hold ratings, leaving room for upside but signaling limited near-term consensus conviction. Benzinga coverage of analyst moves
• Negative Sentiment: Cautionary commentary and slight revenue miss — Commentators (e.g., Jim Cramer) flagged that some new policies are risky, and Q4 revenue of $7.44B missed the ~$7.51B consensus — a reminder upside is not guaranteed and execution risk remains. Jim Cramer Notes “Southwest Took a Big Risk With Some New Policies” Southwest Airlines (LUV) Posts $7.4B Revenue for Q4 2025 as EPS Beats Guidance

Institutional Trading of Southwest Airlines

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Southwest Airlines by 100.6% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 39,347 shares of the airline’s stock worth $1,303,000 after purchasing an additional 19,729 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 5.4% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 61,060 shares of the airline’s stock worth $2,050,000 after buying an additional 3,141 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 7,459 shares of the airline’s stock worth $250,000 after buying an additional 527 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its stake in Southwest Airlines by 11.0% in the second quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 11,498 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $373,000 after buying an additional 1,136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in Southwest Airlines by 3.0% in the second quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 65,558 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $2,127,000 after acquiring an additional 1,933 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The stock has a market cap of $26.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 60.93, a P/E/G ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $41.37 and a 200 day simple moving average of $35.38.

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

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 16th. Investors of record on Friday, December 26th were given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 26th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Southwest Airlines’s payout ratio is currently 85.71%.

About Southwest Airlines

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.