Southwest Airlines sees Q2 adjusted EPS of $0.35-$0.65

Southwest Airlines Co

22/04/2026 21:34

Overview

US airline's Q1 operating revenue rose 12.8% yr/yr, slightly missing analyst expectations

Net income was $227 mln with diluted EPS of $0.45

Company returned over $1.3 bln to shareholders via buybacks and dividends in Q1

Outlook

Southwest guides Q2 2026 adjusted EPS to $0.35-$0.65

Company expects Q2 2026 RASM up 16.5%-18.5% year-over-year

Q2 2026 fuel cost per gallon is assumed to be $4.10-$4.154 based on forward curve as of April 16

Q2 2026 CASM-X is expected to increase between 3.5% and 4.0% year-over-year

Southwest maintains full-year capacity growth forecast at about 2%, low end of prior 2%-3% range

Result Drivers

NEW PRODUCT OFFERINGS - Demand for new products, including assigned and extra legroom seating, drove record Q1 revenues and double-digit unit revenue growth, per CEO Bob Jordan

CUSTOMER BUY-UP - About 60% of customers upgraded from the base product in Q1, up from 20% in 2025, boosting revenue per passenger

MANAGED BUSINESS REVENUE - Managed business revenue delivered record March and quarterly results, up 16% yr/yr

Key Details

Metric
Beat/Miss
Actual
Consensus Estimate
Q1 Operating Revenue
Slight Miss*
$7.20 bln
$7.26 bln (18 Analysts)
Q1 EPS
$0.45


*Applies to a deviation of less than 1%; not applicable for per-share numbers.

Analyst Coverage

The current average analyst rating on the shares is "hold" and the breakdown of recommendations is 11 "strong buy" or "buy", 10 "hold" and 5 "sell" or "strong sell"

The average consensus recommendation for the airlines peer group is "buy."

Wall Street's median 12-month price target for Southwest Airlines Co is $45.00, about 10% above its April 21 closing price of $40.92

The stock recently traded at 12 times the next 12-month earnings vs. a P/E of 15 three months ago

For questions concerning the data in this report, contact Estimates.Support@lseg.com. For any other questions or feedback, contact reuters.support@thomsonreuters.com.

(This story was created using Reuters automation and AI based on LSEG and company data. It was checked and edited by a Reuters journalist prior to publication.)