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Southwest (LUV) to Launch Seasonal Services This August

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Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV - Free Report) announced a package of new seasonal services and subsequently, extended its flight schedule through Oct 1, 2019. Additionally, the carrier has announced the resumption of a few previously-operated seasonal services.

The airline will initiate a non-stop Saturday service between Dallas Love Field and Corpus Christi, beginning Aug 10, this year. Also, the carrier will begin operations between Richmond, VA and Tampa, FL. This non-stop seasonal service will be available only on Saturdays and Sundays.

Moreover, the low-cost airline will be resuming seasonal services between Hartford, CT and Fort Lauderdale; Buffalo and Fort Lauderdale; Boise and Chicago Midway; Newark and Orlando; Richmond and Orlando and that between Milwaukee and Seattle. These flights will operate on Saturdays from Aug 10 onward. Beginning the same date, Southwest's seasonal weekend operation connecting Des Moines with Phoenix will also return.

Tickets on the routes are available from the company’s official website.

With the earnings season on, let’s delve into the company’s recently released fourth-quarter results. The company reported better-than-expected earnings and revenues in the period. Results were aided by stronger revenues, higher yields and better cost management. Passenger revenues accounting for bulk (93.2%) of the top line improved 8.6% year over year. (Read more: Southwest Airlines Q4 Earnings Top, Q1 RASM View Upbeat)

Zacks Rank & Other Key Picks

Southwest carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Some other top-ranked stocks in the same space are SkyWest, Inc. (SKYW - Free Report) , Azul SA (AZUL - Free Report) and Air France-KLM SA (AFLYY - Free Report) , each sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

SkyWest flaunts an impressive earnings history, having outperformed the Zacks Consensus estimate in each of the trailing four reported quarters, the average being 16.9%. Meanwhile, shares of Azul and Air France-KLM have gained more than 55% and 26%, respectively, in the past six months.

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