Zacks Research Has Negative Outlook for LUV FY2025 Earnings

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) – Equities researchers at Zacks Research lowered their FY2025 EPS estimates for shares of Southwest Airlines in a report issued on Wednesday, May 7th. Zacks Research analyst S. Goswami now expects that the airline will earn $1.41 per share for the year, down from their prior estimate of $1.51. The consensus estimate for Southwest Airlines’ current full-year earnings is $1.55 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Southwest Airlines’ Q1 2027 earnings at $0.37 EPS.

LUV has been the subject of several other research reports. Bank of America reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $31.00 target price (down previously from $33.00) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a report on Friday, January 17th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $23.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Southwest Airlines from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Argus raised Southwest Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $35.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Melius raised Southwest Airlines from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Southwest Airlines presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.59.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

LUV opened at $31.28 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Southwest Airlines has a 12-month low of $23.58 and a 12-month high of $36.12. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $29.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $31.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.83 billion, a PE ratio of 43.45, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.18.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The airline reported ($0.13) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.18) by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $6.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.47 billion. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.69% and a return on equity of 5.77%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.36) earnings per share.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LUV. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 186.7% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 883 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 575 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. increased its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 196.3% in the 4th 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 last quarter. Pandora Wealth Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 1st quarter worth $34,000. Finally, VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. 80.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Southwest Airlines news, Director C. David Cush purchased 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $30.03 per share, with a total value of $150,150.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 19,011 shares in the company, valued at approximately $570,900.33. This represents a 35.69% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director David P. Hess acquired 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 28th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $26.52 per share, with a total value of $198,900.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 23,156 shares in the company, valued at $614,097.12. This represents a 47.90% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have bought 16,670 shares of company stock worth $464,944. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.30%. Southwest Airlines’s payout ratio is 84.71%.

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.