Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Given New $26.00 Price Target at Barclays

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) had its price target lowered by Barclays from $30.00 to $26.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an equal weight rating on the airline’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Southwest Airlines from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 5th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an inline rating and set a $35.00 price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines in a report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Argus upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from a hold rating to a buy rating and set a $40.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 12th. Susquehanna cut their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from an underperform rating to a market perform rating and increased their price objective for the company from $26.00 to $32.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $30.71.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

LUV opened at $26.84 on Friday. Southwest Airlines has a 1-year low of $21.91 and a 1-year high of $39.53. The company has a market cap of $16.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.60, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.15. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $30.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $28.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The airline reported ($0.36) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.34) by ($0.02). Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 8.91% and a net margin of 1.59%. The business had revenue of $6.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.27) earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Southwest Airlines will post 1.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 6th were given 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 2.68%. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 114.29%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 40,926 shares of the airline’s stock worth $1,182,000 after purchasing an additional 339 shares in the last quarter. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors grew its stake in Southwest Airlines by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors now owns 17,383 shares of the airline’s stock worth $502,000 after buying an additional 369 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 64,743 shares of the airline’s stock worth $1,889,000 after buying an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management raised its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 8,055 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $235,000 after buying an additional 382 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 82.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 914 shares of the airline’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 414 shares during the last quarter. 80.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.