Raymond James Raises Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Price Target to $42.00

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV - Get Free Report) had its price target increased by stock analysts at Raymond James from $40.00 to $42.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "outperform" rating on the airline's stock. Raymond James' target price suggests a potential upside of 66.68% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Melius upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Southwest Airlines from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Southwest Airlines from a "hold" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $28.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $31.93.

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Southwest Airlines Trading Down 2.6 %

Shares of LUV stock traded down $0.67 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $25.20. 7,228,853 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,650,120. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.94. Southwest Airlines has a 12-month low of $23.58 and a 12-month high of $36.12. The company's 50-day moving average price is $31.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $31.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The airline reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.11. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 5.77% and a net margin of 1.69%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Southwest Airlines will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director C. David Cush purchased 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $30.03 per share, with a total value of $150,150.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 19,011 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $570,900.33. This trade represents a 35.69 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Southwest Airlines

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Southwest Airlines by 186.7% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 883 shares of the airline's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 575 shares during the period. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. increased its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 196.3% in the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. now owns 889 shares of the airline's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 589 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 41.1% in the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,184 shares of the airline's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares during the period. Finally, VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter worth about $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.