JPMorgan Chase & Co. Increases Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Price Target to $30.00

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) had its price target increased by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $25.00 to $30.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “underweight” rating on the airline’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective would suggest a potential downside of 10.80% from the stock’s current price.

LUV has been the subject of several other reports. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Raymond James increased their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 30th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $31.00 price objective (down from $33.00) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $32.02.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LUV opened at $33.63 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.31. The company has a market cap of $19.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.71, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.10. Southwest Airlines has a one year low of $23.58 and a one year high of $36.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The airline reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.11. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.69% and a return on equity of 5.77%. Research analysts predict that Southwest Airlines will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director C. David Cush purchased 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly 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 legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its position in 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 acquiring an additional 575 shares during the period. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. raised its position 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 worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 589 shares during the period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised 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 worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares during the period. Finally, VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. 80.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.