Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) Price Target Raised to $48.00

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) had its price objective upped by research analysts at TD Cowen from $47.00 to $48.00 in a report issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the airline’s stock. TD Cowen‘s price target would indicate a potential upside of 10.61% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Southwest Airlines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, September 5th. Raymond James Financial lowered their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $60.00 to $54.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $60.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Southwest Airlines presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $47.51.

Southwest Airlines Stock Down 0.2%

NYSE:LUV traded down $0.08 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $43.39. 1,765,070 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,414,160. The company has a fifty day moving average of $40.66 and a 200 day moving average of $43.50. Southwest Airlines has a twelve month low of $29.26 and a twelve month high of $55.11. The company has a market capitalization of $21.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.47.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The airline reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $8.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.25 billion. Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 18.05% and a net margin of 3.34%. The firm’s revenue was up 21.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.11 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Southwest Airlines will post 2.75 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LUV. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines during the 3rd quarter worth about $6,619,000. Vise Technologies Inc. grew its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 23.0% during the 3rd quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 30,625 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $1,275,000 after acquiring an additional 5,729 shares during the period. Avestar Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 9,279 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $386,000 after purchasing an additional 410 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 3rd quarter valued at about $227,000. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 21,628 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $901,000 after purchasing an additional 1,443 shares in 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 major U.S. passenger airline headquartered in Dallas, Texas. The company provides scheduled air transportation for leisure and business travelers, with service connecting cities throughout the United States and selected destinations in Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America.

Southwest is known for its predominantly domestic network and point-to-point operating model. In addition to passenger flights, the company offers ancillary services and air cargo transportation.