Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) Receives $74.00 Consensus PT from Analysts

Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the five research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have given a hold recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $74.00.

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Southwest Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Southwest Gas from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com raised Southwest Gas from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Southwest Gas in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “hold” rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock.

Insider Activity at Southwest Gas

In related news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn sold 2,100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.60, for a total transaction of $156,660,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 7,532,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $561,932,258.40. This trade represents a 21.80 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.39% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southwest Gas

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SWX. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 16,650 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,177,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Southwest Gas by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 8,979 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $635,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Southwest Gas by 18.8% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 937 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its stake in Southwest Gas by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 15,766 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,115,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clear Creek Financial Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 3,427 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $242,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the period. 92.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Southwest Gas Stock Performance

SWX stock opened at $76.41 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $72.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $73.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. Southwest Gas has a 1-year low of $64.31 and a 1-year high of $80.29. The firm has a market cap of $5.49 billion, a PE ratio of 30.81, a P/E/G ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.48.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $1.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.35 billion. Southwest Gas had a return on equity of 5.99% and a net margin of 3.44%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Southwest Gas will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. Southwest Gas’s payout ratio is 90.18%.

Southwest Gas Company Profile

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.