Jefferies Financial Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Stock

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) had its price objective raised by Jefferies Financial Group from $45.00 to $48.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “hold” rating on the airline’s stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s price target points to a potential downside of 6.22% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on LUV. Seaport Research Partners boosted their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $57.00 to $58.00 in a report on Thursday, January 29th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $42.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Raymond James Financial upped their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $42.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $45.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Southwest Airlines from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $45.76.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LUV opened at $51.18 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The business has a 50-day moving average of $41.37 and a 200-day moving average of $35.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 60.93, a PEG ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.15. Southwest Airlines has a fifty-two week low of $23.82 and a fifty-two week high of $51.21.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LUV. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 2,403.8% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 10,120,368 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $328,305,000 after acquiring an additional 9,716,160 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in Southwest Airlines by 43.7% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,335,167 shares of the airline’s stock worth $393,615,000 after purchasing an additional 3,753,183 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 2,468.4% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 3,752,352 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $155,085,000 after purchasing an additional 3,606,255 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $143,450,000. Finally, CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. bought a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the third quarter worth approximately $62,340,000. Institutional investors own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

More Southwest Airlines News

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

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.