Southwest Airlines (LUV) Q4 Earnings Surpass Estimates

Core Viewpoint - Southwest Airlines reported quarterly earnings of $0.56 per share, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.45 per share, and showing an increase from $0.37 per share a year ago, representing an earnings surprise of 24.44% [1][2] Financial Performance - The company posted revenues of $6.93 billion for the quarter ended December 2024, slightly missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.23%, compared to $6.82 billion in the same quarter last year [2] - Over the last four quarters, Southwest has surpassed consensus EPS estimates three times and topped revenue estimates two times [2] Stock Performance - Southwest shares have declined approximately 5.9% since the beginning of the year, while the S&P 500 has gained 2.7% [3] - The current consensus EPS estimate for the upcoming quarter is -$0.12 on revenues of $6.59 billion, and for the current fiscal year, it is $1.54 on revenues of $29.14 billion [7] Industry Outlook - The Transportation - Airline industry is currently ranked in the top 26% of over 250 Zacks industries, indicating a favorable outlook [8] - Empirical research suggests a strong correlation between near-term stock movements and trends in earnings estimate revisions, which can impact stock performance [5][6]