Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) was upgraded by stock analysts at Merrill Lynch to a “neutral” rating in a report issued on Tuesday, AR Network reports.
Shares of Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) traded up 1.87% on Tuesday, hitting $14.70. The stock had a trading volume of 7,787,932 shares. Southwest Airlines has a 1-year low of $8.68 and a 1-year high of $14.66. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $13.52 and its 200-day moving average is $13.48. The company has a market cap of $10.381 billion and a P/E ratio of 27.91.
Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.38. The company had revenue of $4.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.66 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.36 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Southwest Airlines will post $0.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Several other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Analysts at Bank of America Corp. upgraded shares of Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note to investors on Monday. They now have a $15.00 price target on the stock, up previously from $12.50. Separately, analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) from $12.00 to $12.50 in a research note to investors on Tuesday, September 17th. They now have an “underweight” rating on the stock. Finally, analysts at Zacks reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) in a research note to investors on Monday, August 26th. They now have a $14.00 price target on the stock.
Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Southwest Airlines presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $15.21.
Southwest Airlines Co operates Southwest Airlines, a passenger airline, which provides scheduled air transportation in the United States.
