Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Given New $52.00 Price Target at UBS Group

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) had its price objective lowered by research analysts at UBS Group from $53.00 to $52.00 in a research report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the airline’s stock. UBS Group’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 30.59% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on LUV. Evercore upped their target price on Southwest Airlines from $44.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Southwest Airlines from $60.00 to $59.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 24th. Rothschild & Co Redburn upgraded Southwest Airlines from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $35.00 to $40.00 in a research note on Friday, September 18th. Zacks Research cut Southwest Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, Raymond James Financial dropped their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $60.00 to $54.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 24th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $47.41.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LUV traded down $1.01 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $39.82. The stock had a trading volume of 1,968,210 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,403,292. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $41.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.80. The company has a market capitalization of $19.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. Southwest Airlines has a fifty-two week low of $29.26 and a fifty-two week high of $55.11.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The airline reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.42. The business had revenue of $8.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.58 billion. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 2.78% and a return on equity of 14.15%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.43 EPS. Southwest Airlines has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.250-4.250 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.500-0.750 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Southwest Airlines will post 2.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Southwest Airlines

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LUV. SHP Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Archer Investment Corp bought a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Fiduciary Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 109.4% during the 2nd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 871 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

About Southwest Airlines

Southwest Airlines Co is a U.S. commercial airline headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol LUV. The company was founded in 1967 and began operating scheduled passenger service in 1971, initially serving cities in Texas before expanding across the United States.

Southwest primarily provides scheduled air transportation for passengers and also offers air cargo services. Its operations are centered on a large Boeing 737 fleet, supporting frequent service between major cities and regional airports.