JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Positive Forecast for Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Stock Price

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) had its price target hoisted by equities research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $25.00 to $30.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “underweight” rating on the airline’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target would suggest a potential downside of 6.65% from the stock’s previous close.

LUV has been the topic of several other research reports. Susquehanna dropped their target price on Southwest Airlines from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $31.00 price objective (down previously from $33.00) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research report on Friday, January 17th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Citigroup reissued a “sell” rating and set a $29.50 price objective (down previously from $31.50) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Southwest Airlines presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $32.02.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

Southwest Airlines stock opened at $32.14 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $31.27. Southwest Airlines has a 12 month low of $23.58 and a 12 month high of $36.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.05 billion, a PE ratio of 44.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.10.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The airline reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.11. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.69% and a return on equity of 5.77%. Equities analysts predict that Southwest Airlines will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southwest Airlines

In other news, Director C. David Cush purchased 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $30.03 per share, for a total transaction of $150,150.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 19,011 shares in the company, valued at $570,900.33. This represents a 35.69 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Southwest Airlines

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Atria Investments Inc grew its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 30.4% in the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 23,351 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $692,000 after purchasing an additional 5,450 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 87,362 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $2,589,000 after buying an additional 1,527 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 3rd quarter valued at about $259,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Southwest Airlines by 8.4% during the third quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,918 shares of the airline’s stock worth $146,000 after purchasing an additional 383 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Highland Peak Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 3rd quarter valued at $2,963,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

About Southwest Airlines

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.