Brokers Issue Forecasts for Southwest Airlines Co.’s Q2 2024 Earnings (NYSE:LUV)

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) – Equities research analysts at Seaport Res Ptn cut their Q2 2024 earnings per share estimates for shares of Southwest Airlines in a report released on Thursday, June 27th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst D. Mckenzie now anticipates that the airline will earn $0.37 per share for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $0.50. The consensus estimate for Southwest Airlines’ current full-year earnings is $0.95 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for Southwest Airlines’ Q3 2024 earnings at $0.25 EPS and FY2024 earnings at $0.93 EPS.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The airline reported ($0.36) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.34) by ($0.02). Southwest Airlines had a return on equity of 8.91% and a net margin of 1.59%. The firm had revenue of $6.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.42 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.27) earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

LUV has been the subject of several other reports. Citigroup increased their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $27.50 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Argus reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Southwest Airlines in a research note on Tuesday, May 28th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Southwest Airlines from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 5th. HSBC started coverage on Southwest Airlines in a research note on Monday, May 13th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $27.80 price objective for the company. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their target price on Southwest Airlines from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 26th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Southwest Airlines currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $29.83.

Southwest Airlines Stock Performance

Shares of Southwest Airlines stock opened at $28.61 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $17.12 billion, a PE ratio of 45.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.15. Southwest Airlines has a 52 week low of $21.91 and a 52 week high of $39.53. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $27.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $29.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LUV. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Southwest Airlines by 374.0% in the fourth quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 858 shares of the airline’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 677 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew its stake in shares of Southwest Airlines by 82.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 914 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 414 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Pineridge Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Airlines Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 19th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 18th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.52%. Southwest Airlines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 114.29%.

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.