UBS Group Cuts Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Price Target to $56.00

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) had its price objective decreased by analysts at UBS Group from $59.00 to $56.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the airline’s stock. UBS Group’s price target suggests a potential upside of 37.62% from the stock’s current price.

LUV has been the subject of a number of other research reports. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $66.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $37.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Seaport Research Partners boosted their price objective on shares of Southwest Airlines from $57.00 to $58.00 in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Barclays raised Southwest Airlines from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $34.00 to $56.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Finally, Raymond James Financial lifted their target price on Southwest Airlines from $42.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.25.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LUV traded up $1.28 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $40.69. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,782,602 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,431,469. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.47, a P/E/G ratio of 0.28 and a beta of 1.10. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $46.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $39.00. Southwest Airlines has a one year low of $23.82 and a one year high of $55.11. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The airline reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $7.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.51 billion. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.57% and a return on equity of 6.18%. The business’s revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.56 earnings per share. Southwest Airlines has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.000- EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.450- EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LUV. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Airlines by 19.2% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 79,357 shares of the airline’s stock worth $3,280,000 after acquiring an additional 12,779 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in Southwest Airlines by 27.9% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 85,759 shares of the airline’s stock worth $3,545,000 after purchasing an additional 18,685 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in Southwest Airlines by 23.8% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 939,398 shares of the airline’s stock worth $38,916,000 after purchasing an additional 180,619 shares during the last quarter. SHP Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL increased its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 37.9% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 7,275 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $301,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. 80.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Southwest Airlines

Southwest Airlines Co is a U.S.-based low-cost carrier that operates a point-to-point domestic and near-international airline network. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company primarily flies Boeing 737 aircraft and offers no-frills, single-class service designed to keep fares competitive. Southwest’s operating model emphasizes high aircraft utilization, quick turnaround times and an open seating policy, allowing customers to board and select seats on a first-come, first-served basis.

Founded in 1967 by Herb Kelleher and Rollin King as Air Southwest Company, Southwest began commercial service in 1971, initially connecting Dallas, Houston and San Antonio.