The Goldman Sachs Group Reiterates “Sell” Rating for Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV)

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV)‘s stock had its “sell” rating reiterated by stock analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group in a report issued on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have a $28.00 price target on the airline’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price objective would indicate a potential downside of 14.11% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $29.00 price target (down previously from $32.00) on shares of Southwest Airlines in a report on Friday, July 26th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Southwest Airlines from an “underperform” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $24.00 to $32.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Susquehanna increased their price target on Southwest Airlines from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Bank of America started coverage on Southwest Airlines in a report on Monday, November 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $33.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Southwest Airlines from $20.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Southwest Airlines presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $30.78.

Southwest Airlines Price Performance

Shares of Southwest Airlines stock opened at $32.60 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $30.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $28.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.88 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 $35.18.

Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The airline reported $0.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.77 billion. Southwest Airlines had a positive return on equity of 4.56% and a negative net margin of 0.06%. Southwest Airlines’s revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.38 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Southwest Airlines will post 0.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Southwest Airlines

In related news, major shareholder Elliott Investment Management sold 1,203,920 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.83, for a total value of $35,912,933.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 59,912,580 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,787,192,261.40. This trade represents a 1.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Rakesh Gangwal purchased 643,788 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $29.98 per share, for a total transaction of $19,300,764.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,606,311 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $108,117,203.78. This represents a 21.73 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southwest Airlines

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Airlines in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. CVA Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in Southwest Airlines by 179.5% during the 2nd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 1,034 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 664 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Southwest Airlines during the third quarter worth $33,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in Southwest Airlines during the second quarter worth $33,000. Finally, AM Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Airlines in the second quarter valued at $37,000. Institutional investors own 80.82% of the company’s stock.

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.