For the quarter ended March 2026, Southwest Airlines (LUV) reported revenue of $7.25 billion, up 12.8% over the same period last year. EPS came in at $0.45, compared to -$0.13 in the year-ago quarter.
The reported revenue compares to the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $7.22 billion, representing a surprise of +0.41%. The company delivered an EPS surprise of -0.29%, with the consensus EPS estimate being $0.45.
While investors scrutinize revenue and earnings changes year-over-year and how they compare with Wall Street expectations to determine their next move, some key metrics always offer a more accurate picture of a company's financial health.
As these metrics influence top- and bottom-line performance, comparing them to the year-ago numbers and what analysts estimated helps investors project a stock's price performance more accurately.
Here is how Southwest performed in the just reported quarter in terms of the metrics most widely monitored and projected by Wall Street analysts:- Load factor: 74.1% versus the five-analyst average estimate of 77.9%.
- CASM, excluding Fuel and oil expense, special items, and profit sharing expense: 13.11 cents versus the four-analyst average estimate of 13.3 cents.
- Available seat miles (ASMs): 42.05 billion versus 42 billion estimated by four analysts on average.
- Revenue passenger miles (RPMs): 31.15 billion versus 32.79 billion estimated by four analysts on average.
- Revenue Per Available Seat Mile (RASM): 17.24 cents compared to the 17.26 cents average estimate based on four analysts.
- Passenger revenue per ASM (PRASM): 15.68 cents compared to the 16.71 cents average estimate based on four analysts.
- Passenger revenue yield per RPM: 21.16 cents compared to the 19.82 cents average estimate based on three analysts.
- Fuel consumed: 496.00 Mgal versus 510.90 Mgal estimated by three analysts on average.
- Fuel costs per gallon, including fuel tax: 2.73 $/gal versus 2.62 $/gal estimated by three analysts on average.
- Operating Revenues- Passenger [$M]: $6.59 billion versus the five-analyst average estimate of $6.56 billion. The reported number represents a year-over-year change of +13.4%.
- Operating Revenues- Other: $614 million compared to the $658.24 million average estimate based on five analysts. The reported number represents a change of +6.6% year over year.
- Operating Revenues- Freight [$M]: $44 million versus the five-analyst average estimate of $47.26 million. The reported number represents a year-over-year change of +7.3%.
View all Key Company Metrics for Southwest here>>>
Shares of Southwest have returned +2.7% over the past month versus the Zacks S&P 500 composite's +8.6% change. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), indicating that it could perform in line with the broader market in the near term.Beyond Nvidia: AI's Second Wave Is Here
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
