Southwest Airlines Co. to Post Q2 2024 Earnings of $0.53 Per Share, Zacks Research Forecasts (NYSE:LUV)

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) – Analysts at Zacks Research decreased their Q2 2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Southwest Airlines in a report issued on Thursday, June 27th. Zacks Research analyst S. Goswami now anticipates that the airline will earn $0.53 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $0.59. The consensus estimate for Southwest Airlines’ current full-year earnings is $0.95 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Southwest Airlines’ Q4 2024 earnings at $0.17 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $0.78 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $0.52 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $1.73 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $2.53 EPS.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last released 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 net margin of 1.59% and a return on equity of 8.91%. The firm had revenue of $6.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.42 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.27) earnings per share. Southwest Airlines’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on the company. Citigroup boosted their price target on Southwest Airlines from $27.50 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Melius reissued a “sell” rating and issued a $26.00 target price on shares of Southwest Airlines in a report on Monday, June 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 6th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Argus reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research note on Tuesday, May 28th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $29.83.

Southwest Airlines Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of LUV opened at $28.11 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $27.73 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $29.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.02. Southwest Airlines has a one year low of $21.91 and a one year high of $39.53. The company has a market cap of $16.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.15.

Southwest Airlines Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 19th will be issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 18th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.56%. Southwest Airlines’s payout ratio is 114.29%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 374.0% during the fourth quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 858 shares of the airline’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 677 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 82.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 914 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 414 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Pineridge Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. 80.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.