Q3 2024 EPS Estimates for Southwest Airlines Co. Increased by Seaport Res Ptn (NYSE:LUV)

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) – Stock analysts at Seaport Res Ptn upped their Q3 2024 earnings estimates for Southwest Airlines in a research note issued on Monday, April 15th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst D. Mckenzie now expects that the airline will post earnings per share of $0.55 for the quarter, up from their prior forecast of $0.40. The consensus estimate for Southwest Airlines’ current full-year earnings is $1.52 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for Southwest Airlines’ Q4 2024 earnings at $0.70 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $1.85 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $2.85 EPS.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on LUV. Raymond James increased their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “inline” rating and set a $35.00 price target on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Argus raised shares of Southwest Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Southwest Airlines from an “underperform” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $20.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.82.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

NYSE LUV opened at $28.78 on Wednesday. Southwest Airlines has a 12-month low of $21.91 and a 12-month high of $39.53. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $30.96 and its 200-day moving average is $28.46. The company has a market capitalization of $17.22 billion, a PE ratio of 38.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The airline reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $6.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.75 billion. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.91% and a return on equity of 9.40%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.38) earnings per share.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 6th were issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 96.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Roundview Capital LLC increased its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 21.2% in the first quarter. Roundview Capital LLC now owns 13,336 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $611,000 after purchasing an additional 2,335 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 1st quarter valued at $403,000. APG Asset Management N.V. lifted its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 16.6% in the first quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 6,335 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $261,000 after buying an additional 900 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. grew its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 5.3% during the 1st quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 12,187 shares of the airline’s stock worth $559,000 after acquiring an additional 615 shares during the period. Finally, Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 40,189 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $1,841,000 after purchasing an additional 1,246 shares during the period. 80.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southwest Airlines Company Profile

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.