Bank of Nova Scotia Invests $283,000 in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

Bank of Nova Scotia acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX – Get Rating) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 4,580 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $283,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cibc World Markets Corp bought a new stake in Southwest Gas during the 4th quarter worth about $12,376,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 30,164 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,867,000 after purchasing an additional 1,081 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 6.0% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 29,326 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,815,000 after purchasing an additional 1,649 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 761,856 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $47,145,000 after purchasing an additional 72,724 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trilogy Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Southwest Gas in the 4th quarter valued at about $212,000. Institutional investors own 87.59% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Southwest Gas news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn acquired 2,332,835 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 10th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $60.12 per share, for a total transaction of $140,250,040.20. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 8,944,465 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $537,741,235.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn bought 2,332,835 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 10th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $60.12 per share, with a total value of $140,250,040.20. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 8,944,465 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $537,741,235.80. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn bought 26,310 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 15th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $60.09 per share, with a total value of $1,580,967.90. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 9,509,797 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $571,443,701.73. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 3,322,986 shares of company stock worth $199,585,422 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Gas Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:SWX opened at $57.20 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $58.37 and its 200 day simple moving average is $62.84. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $53.79 and a fifty-two week high of $95.62.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 28th. The utilities provider reported $1.16 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.57 by ($0.41). The company had revenue of $1.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.22 billion. Southwest Gas had a positive return on equity of 6.24% and a negative net margin of 4.79%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 15th will be issued a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 14th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.34%. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -65.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and issued a $95.00 target price (down previously from $100.00) on shares of Southwest Gas in a research note on Monday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Southwest Gas from $78.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 7th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Southwest Gas in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “sell” rating on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Southwest Gas from $71.00 to $63.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $79.60.

Southwest Gas Company Profile

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Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc engages in the energy business. It operates through the following business segments: Natural Gas Operations and Utility Infrastructure Services. The Natural Gas Operations segment focuses on purchasing, distribution, and transportation of natural gas in Arizona, California, and Nevada.