LUV drawdown: 32.0% below the all-time high
Southwest Airlines Company (LUV) is 32.0% below its all-time high, set Jan 2, 2018 (as of market close, Jul 24, 2026). The chart shows every day as a percentage of the highest level reached up to that point: 100% means a fresh record, everything below is a drawdown. "All-time" means since our price data begins (1980).
- Below all-time high
- −32.0%
- 68.0% of ATH
- All-time high
- $66.29
- Jan 2, 2018
- Time below the high
- 8.6 yrs
- since Jan 2, 2018
- Worst-ever drawdown
- −78.5%
- Mar 5, 2009
- Longest underwater
- 13.2 yrs
- between all-time highs
- Today's level first reached
- Jan 22, 2015
- 11.5 yrs ago
- Last time this deep
- Oct 16, 2013
- in a previous episode
% of all-time high since 1980#
The classic underwater chart (drawdown curve), drawn as % of the all-time high — 100% is a fresh record, everything below it is time spent underwater.
% of all-time high on the price basis — the all-time high considers the full history of LUV, including years before the visible window. Dividends are excluded on this basis (the convention headlines use).
The deepest drawdowns on record#
Every decline of 15% or more from an all-time high (price basis), deepest first.
| Peak | Trough | Depth | Peak → trough | Recovered by | Underwater |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 5, 2001 | Mar 5, 2009 | −78.5% | 8.2 yrs | Mar 10, 2014 | 13.2 yrs |
| Jan 2, 2018 | Oct 31, 2023 | −66.5% | 5.8 yrs | not yet | 8.6 yrs+ |
| Jul 22, 1983 | Dec 10, 1987 | −66.2% | 4.4 yrs | Jan 31, 1991 | 7.5 yrs |
| Feb 3, 1994 | Dec 20, 1994 | −59.4% | 11 mo | Jan 20, 1998 | 4.0 yrs |
| May 29, 1981 | Sep 25, 1981 | −49.4% | 4 mo | Sep 2, 1982 | 15 mo |
| Apr 23, 1999 | Sep 22, 1999 | −37.5% | 5 mo | Jul 31, 2000 | 15 mo |
| Jan 29, 2015 | Jul 8, 2015 | −31.1% | 5 mo | Nov 20, 2015 | 10 mo |
| Dec 7, 2015 | Feb 8, 2016 | −30.0% | 2 mo | Dec 7, 2016 | 12 mo |
Price basis (no dividends) — the convention crash histories use. With dividends reinvested, recoveries arrive years earlier; switch the basis on the chart above to see it.
Drawdown vs what came next#
One dot per month since 1980: how far LUV stood below its all-time high, and the total return over the following 1, 5 and 10 years.
Read this with survivorship bias in mind: LUV is on this chart precisely because it survived — the many stocks that fell this far and never recovered (or were delisted) aren't on anyone's chart, so past recoveries here say little about the odds ahead. Monthly windows also overlap heavily (they are not independent samples). Not investment advice.
FAQ
- How far is LUV from its all-time high?
- LUV is currently 32.0% below its all-time high, set Jan 2, 2018 (as of market close, Jul 24, 2026). Prices only, the convention headlines use; with dividends reinvested the gap is usually smaller.
- What was the biggest LUV drawdown ever?
- The deepest decline on record in our data (since 1980) took the stock 78.5% below its prior high, bottoming Mar 5, 2009. The table on this page lists every major episode with its peak, trough and recovery date.
Methodology & related#
Daily closing prices since 1980 (split-adjusted). "All-time" means since our price data begins — LUV may have traded earlier. For a 150-year index drawdown record see the S&P 500 drawdown page. The price basis excludes dividends; the total-return basis reinvests them; the real basis additionally deflates by CPI. See also returns by year, 150 years of returns and the rolling-returns explorer. Past performance does not predict future returns; not investment advice.