Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 24,523 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,809,000.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 67.2% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 398 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Southwest Gas by 154.8% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 428 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Southwest Gas in the third quarter worth $40,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 96.6% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 574 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas in the second quarter valued at $49,000. 92.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
In related news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn sold 1,390,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.74, for a total value of $106,668,600.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 9,632,604 shares in the company, valued at $739,206,030.96. This trade represents a 12.61 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.39% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Shares of SWX stock opened at $75.63 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $57.55 and a 12 month high of $80.29. The firm has a market cap of $5.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.50, a PEG ratio of 4.11 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $75.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $73.79.
Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.07 by $0.02. Southwest Gas had a net margin of 3.44% and a return on equity of 5.99%. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.10 EPS. Southwest Gas's revenue was down 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.16 EPS for the current year.
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. Southwest Gas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 100.00%.
A number of brokerages have commented on SWX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Southwest Gas from $78.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Southwest Gas from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th.
Read Our Latest Research Report on Southwest Gas
Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, distributes and transports natural gas in Arizona, Nevada, and California. The company operates through Natural Gas Distribution, Utility Infrastructure Services, and Pipeline and Storage segments. It also provides trenching, installation, and replacement of underground pipes, as well as maintenance services for energy distribution systems.
This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].
Before you consider Southwest Gas, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Southwest Gas wasn't on the list.
While Southwest Gas currently has a "Hold" rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.