Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Price Target Raised to $60.00 at Raymond James Financial

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) had its price target increased by Raymond James Financial from $55.00 to $60.00 in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the airline’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Southwest Airlines from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. HSBC raised Southwest Airlines from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $24.40 to $36.10 in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their target price on Southwest Airlines from $47.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.58.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

NYSE:LUV opened at $50.14 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.46, a PEG ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.48 and a quick ratio of 0.41. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $43.34 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.59. Southwest Airlines has a 1 year low of $28.98 and a 1 year high of $55.11.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The airline reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 10.66%. The business had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.13) earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Southwest Airlines has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.350-0.650 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines will post 3.02 EPS for the current year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 11th were given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 11th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Southwest Airlines’s payout ratio is 46.45%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LUV. CX Institutional raised its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 12.1% in the second quarter. CX Institutional now owns 11,414 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $587,000 after acquiring an additional 1,232 shares in the last quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines during the 1st quarter valued at about $134,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 25.4% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 16,506 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $620,000 after purchasing an additional 3,346 shares in the last quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 89,224 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $3,352,000 after purchasing an additional 2,473 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 34.5% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 7,245 shares of the airline’s stock worth $272,000 after purchasing an additional 1,859 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

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.