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Southwest climbs to highest since 2022 on a double upgrade and 66% price target hike from JPMorgan

A rare double upgrade from JPMorgan has Southwest Airlines taking off on Friday morning, with shares up 4% shortly after the market opened.

The firm upgraded Southwest from “underweight” to “overweight” and hiked its price target from $36 to $60. According to analyst Jamie Baker, the potential for earnings-per-share guidance of $5 is “attractively probable” in 2026 — a figure that would “handily dwarf” the Wall Street consensus.

“Southwest possesses the industry’s deepest track record of profitability, an investment grade balance sheet, and a loyal customer base,” Baker wrote, adding that recent hiccups and slow adaptation is stabilizing, and revenue-driving initiatives like bag fees are “progressing as planned.”

Bag fees helped drive the airline to record third-quarter revenue in October. Later this month, the carrier will roll out assigned seating, which will open up new seating tier categories (and more premium ticket options).

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SpaceX gets a wave of bullish ratings from Wall Street analysts

SpaceX received more than a dozen positive analyst calls on Tuesday — including from major Wall Street banks — as they initiate coverage on Elon Musk’s space and AI company.

SpaceX went public on June 12 at a $2.2 trillion valuation, the largest debut in history. While the company hasn’t yet posted a profit, it seems to have convinced Wall Street that it will get there and grow its valuation on the way.

Of the at least 17 analysts that gave a rating on Tuesday, all but one gave it a “buy” or “outperform” rating. MoffettNathanson was "neutral."

The ratings come as SpaceX joined the Nasdaq 100 index, a benchmark tech-heavy basket of companies that underpins millions of portfolios. The inclusion adds built-in demand for the stock from index funds and ETFs.

Still, SpaceX fell more than 5% on Tuesday amid a broader sell-off, and is currently effectively flat from its opening price of $150 a share.

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