Southwest Air Quarterly Earnings, Revenue Above Estimates

Southwest Airlines Co. on Thursday turned in quarterly profit that reached above Wall Street's target. The airline said second-quarter net earnings were $746 million, or $1.23 a share, versus $820 million, or $1.28 a share, a year ago. Adjusted earnings for the most recent quarter were $1.24 a share, and that's 4 cents a share higher than expected in a FactSet survey of analysts. Operating revenue rose to $5.744 billion from $5.384 billion a year earlier. Analysts had forecast revenue of $5.735 billion. Second-quarter load factor, or the percentage of seats filled with passengers, was 85.6%.