Southwest Airlines Co vs Upstart Holdings Inc — how do they compare? Southwest Airlines Co trades at $45.71 (market cap $21.97B), while Upstart Holdings Inc trades at $29.91 (market cap $2.94B). The key difference: Southwest Airlines Co is far larger — about 7.5× Upstart Holdings Inc's market cap, and Southwest Airlines Co pays a 1.6% dividend while Upstart Holdings Inc pays none. Which is the better fit depends on your goals.
| LUV | UPST | |
|---|---|---|
Market Cap | $21.97B | $2.94B |
Sector | Industrials | Financials |
52-Week High | $54.80 | $73.76 |
52-Week Low | $29.67 | $24.22 |
Enterprise Value | $25.06B | — |
Dividend Yield | 1.6% | — |
Signals from Pluang's Aura AI — not financial advice
Southwest Airlines (LUV) trades at $47.05, up 0.23% today, with a bullish technical signal and consensus price target of $53.86. Recent Q2 2026 earnings beat expectations with EPS of $0.94 versus $0.51 expected, driven by record revenue. The company maintains a solid liquidity position of $8.73B cash and has declared quarterly dividends of $0.18 per share, with new board appointments signaling strategic focus.
Outlook is positive with projected 2026 net income margin of 2.78% and revenue growth to $30.1B, but risks include fuel cost volatility and competitive pressures. Analyst sentiment is mixed with 42% buy ratings, offering potential upside of 14.5% to the consensus target, though institutional selling by firms like Elliott Management warrants monitoring.
Upstart (UPST) trades at $31.09, up 4.64% on the day, with a bullish technical signal from moving averages. The company reported Q2 2026 revenue growth of 42% year-over-year and a return to GAAP profitability, with loan originations surging 50%. However, it has missed EPS expectations for three consecutive quarters. The stock is supported by a consensus analyst price target of $47.20, implying significant upside, but faces headwinds from high interest rates and competitive pressures.
The outlook is mixed: strong loan growth and AI-driven underwriting improvements offer growth potential, but recent earnings misses, a high P/E ratio of 59.79, and negative operating cash flow in 2025 pose risks. Investor sentiment is cautiously optimistic, with 45% of analysts rating it a Buy, though volatility from macroeconomic factors remains a key concern for shareholders.
Trailing returns across standard periods
Latest headlines on both assets
Southwest Airlines is the largest domestic carrier in the United States, as measured by the number of originating passengers boarded. Southwest operates over 700 aircraft in an all-Boeing 737 fleet. Despite expanding into longer routes and business travel, the airline still specializes in short-haul leisure flights, using a point-to-point network. Southwest operates a low-cost carrier business model.
Read more on LUV →Upstart Holdings Inc provides credit services. The company provides a proprietary, cloud-based, artificial intelligence lending platform. The platform aggregates consumer demand for loans and connects it to the network of Upstart AI-enabled bank partners. The revenue of the company is primarily comprised of fees paid by banks.
Read more on UPST →