Analysts Set Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) Target Price at $32.31

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) has received a consensus rating of “Reduce” from the eighteen research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have given a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $32.31.

Several research analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Southwest Airlines from $20.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from an “underperform” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the company from $24.00 to $32.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Citigroup reiterated a “sell” rating and set a $29.50 price target (down from $31.50) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th.

Insider Activity

In other Southwest Airlines news, insider Linda B. Rutherford sold 3,849 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.40, for a total value of $132,405.60. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 89,376 shares in the company, valued at $3,074,534.40. This represents a 4.13 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LUV. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 186.7% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 883 shares of the airline’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 575 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its position in Southwest Airlines by 41.1% in the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,184 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares during the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 60.6% during the third quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 1,661 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 627 shares during the period. Finally, New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 35.3% in the third quarter. New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,923 shares of the airline’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 502 shares during the last quarter. 80.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Southwest Airlines Stock Down 2.2 %

LUV opened at $31.88 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.88. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $33.02 and a 200-day moving average of $30.36. Southwest Airlines has a fifty-two week low of $23.58 and a fifty-two week high of $36.12. The company has a market capitalization of $19.12 billion, a P/E ratio of -455.36, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.14.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 26th were paid a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 26th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.26%. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio is -1,028.57%.

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.