NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Shares of Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV) - Get Report closed up 1.33% at $46.35 with airline stocks posting gains today on benefits from falling oil prices that are continuing to drive down the cost of fuel.

Brent was lower by 2.75% to $54.37 at 4:03 p.m. in New York, while West Texas Intermediate was down 2.24% to $43.66.

Oil prices fell today as a rebounding dollar and Kuwait's stance that OPEC had no choice but to keep producing in an oversupplied market undercut a rally from the previous day, Reuters reports. The WSJ Dollar Index was up 1.45%.

"It's dollar play all over again today," Price Futures Group analyst Phil Flynn told Reuters. "The fact that the oil market is oversupplied is a given, so the only real variable now are currency moves and how they impact commodities demand," Flynn added.

JP Morgan recently issued a report on airline stocks, in which they commented on Southwest Airlines. "Southwest Airlines' [Passenger Revenue per Available Seat Mile] PRASM did turn positive in February. Nonetheless, we have decreased our estimate, primarily due to revised fiscal year fuel guidance [$1.95 to $2.05]," analysts said.

"We are also taking this opportunity to decrease first-quarter CASM-ex, guided to down 2% at our Aviation, Transportation and Industrials Conference, and increase first-quarter capacity, which management narrowed to 7%. These cumulative changes produce a 2015 EPS of $3.57, down from $3.69 previously and above $3.52 consensus. 2016 stands relatively unchanged at $3.84, consensus at $3.74," analysts added.

Insight from TheStreet's Research Team:

RealMoney.com contributor Ed Ponsi wrote today about the airline stock's upside. Here's a snippet of what he had to say:

Has the airline sector reached the next leg of its flight higher? While the broader market has been volatile and choppy, the Dow Jones U.S. Airlines Index ($DJUSAR) has been in a holding pattern, consolidating gains. This index has more than tripled in value since the start of 2013, but really took off in October as the price of oil began its descent.

The airlines appeared to be forming a top, as we can see by the odd-looking head-and-shoulders pattern that has been forming since early December. The move above 265 (blue dotted line) means that the index has climbed above the right shoulder of the formation, which negates the bearish pattern and clears the runway for an ascent to the recent high of 275, reached in January.

Which individual charts in this sector stand out?

The best chart [below] in the sector ... belongs to Southwest Airlines. Southwest has maintained both diagonal and horizontal support (black lines). The stock trades just 2% below its all-time high, less than a dollar above the stock's current price. Southwest's 100-day moving average (green) flanks its bullish trendline, providing additional support, and its MACD indicator signaled a buy last week (arrow).

- Ed Ponsi, '3 Airline Stocks That Fly Right' originally published 3/19/2015 on RealMoneypro.com.

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Separately, TheStreet Ratings team rates SOUTHWEST AIRLINES as a Buy with a ratings score of A+. TheStreet Ratings Team has this to say about their recommendation:

"We rate SOUTHWEST AIRLINES (LUV) a BUY. This is based on the convergence of positive investment measures, which should help this stock outperform the majority of stocks that we rate. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its solid stock price performance, revenue growth, largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures and notable return on equity. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company shows weak operating cash flow." You can view the full analysis from the report here: LUV Ratings Report