Market Whales and Their Recent Bets on LUV Options

Investors with a lot of money to spend have taken a bullish stance on Southwest Airlines LUV.

And retail traders should know.

We noticed this today when the trades showed up on publicly available options history that we track here at Benzinga.

Whether these are institutions or just wealthy individuals, we don't know. But when something this big happens with LUV, it often means somebody knows something is about to happen.

So how do we know what these investors just did?

Today, Benzinga's options scanner spotted 9 uncommon options trades for Southwest Airlines.

This isn't normal.

The overall sentiment of these big-money traders is split between 66% bullish and 33%, bearish.

Out of all of the special options we uncovered, 2 are puts, for a total amount of $592,900, and 7 are calls, for a total amount of $404,065.

Expected Price Movements

Analyzing the Volume and Open Interest in these contracts, it seems that the big players have been eyeing a price window from $27.5 to $37.5 for Southwest Airlines during the past quarter.

Insights into Volume & Open Interest

Assessing the volume and open interest is a strategic step in options trading. These metrics shed light on the liquidity and investor interest in Southwest Airlines's options at specified strike prices. The forthcoming data visualizes the fluctuation in volume and open interest for both calls and puts, linked to Southwest Airlines's substantial trades, within a strike price spectrum from $27.5 to $37.5 over the preceding 30 days.

Southwest Airlines Option Activity Analysis: Last 30 Days

Largest Options Trades Observed:

About Southwest Airlines

Southwest Airlines is the largest domestic air carrier in the United States by passengers boarded. Southwest operates over 800 aircraft in an all-Boeing 737 fleet. Despite offering some longer routes and a few perks for business travelers, the airline predominantly specializes in short-haul, leisure flights operated in a single, open-seating cabin configuration in a point-to-point network.

Southwest Airlines's Current Market Status

• With a trading volume of 3,956,922, the price of LUV is up by 0.85%, reaching $27.23.
• Current RSI values indicate that the stock is is currently neutral between overbought and oversold.
• Next earnings report is scheduled for 78 days from now.

Expert Opinions on Southwest Airlines

A total of 5 professional analysts have given their take on this stock in the last 30 days, setting an average price target of $25.4.

• An analyst from Raymond James downgraded its action to Outperform with a price target of $30.
• Maintaining their stance, an analyst from Susquehanna continues to hold a Neutral rating for Southwest Airlines, targeting a price of $25.
• An analyst from Susquehanna persists with their Neutral rating on Southwest Airlines, maintaining a target price of $27.
• Maintaining their stance, an analyst from TD Cowen continues to hold a Hold rating for Southwest Airlines, targeting a price of $25.
• An analyst from Jefferies downgraded its action to Underperform with a price target of $20.

Options trading presents higher risks and potential rewards. Astute traders manage these risks by continually educating themselves, adapting their strategies, monitoring multiple indicators, and keeping a close eye on market movements. Stay informed about the latest Southwest Airlines options trades with real-time alerts from Benzinga Pro.