Q4 EPS Estimate for Southwest Airlines Lifted by Analyst

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) – Equities research analysts at Zacks Research lifted their Q4 2025 earnings per share estimates for Southwest Airlines in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, November 5th. Zacks Research analyst Team now forecasts that the airline will post earnings of $0.68 per share for the quarter, up from their previous estimate of $0.58. The consensus estimate for Southwest Airlines’ current full-year earnings is $1.55 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Southwest Airlines’ Q2 2026 earnings at $0.86 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $1.13 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $0.86 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $4.05 EPS.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on LUV. UBS Group decreased their target price on Southwest Airlines from $35.00 to $33.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. HSBC downgraded Southwest Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Southwest Airlines from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Southwest Airlines from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $33.38.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

NYSE LUV opened at $31.55 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $32.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $32.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.55, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.23. Southwest Airlines has a 1-year low of $23.82 and a 1-year high of $37.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.49 and a quick ratio of 0.42.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The airline reported ($0.38) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $6.17 billion for the quarter. Southwest Airlines had a net margin of 1.38% and a return on equity of 6.39%.

Southwest Airlines announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, July 23rd that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the airline to reacquire up to 9.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Southwest Airlines in the second quarter valued at $25,000. Corsicana & Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in Southwest Airlines during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in Southwest Airlines during the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Pandora Wealth Inc. purchased a new stake in Southwest Airlines in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 80.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.