Farther Finance Advisors LLC Has $33,000 Stock Holdings in Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE:SWX)

Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE:SWX) by 1,055.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 462 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 422 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC’s holdings in Southwest Gas were worth $33,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in SWX. Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 0.8% during 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. Mariner LLC increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 10,146 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $717,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 41.2% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 833 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 4,023 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $284,000 after purchasing an additional 288 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 40.1% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,013 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.77% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SWX opened at $75.17 on Wednesday. Southwest Gas Corporation has a twelve month low of $64.31 and a twelve month high of $80.29. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $72.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $72.74. The company has a market capitalization of $5.41 billion, a PE ratio of 24.17, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The utilities provider reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.04. Southwest Gas had a return on equity of 6.76% and a net margin of 4.66%. The firm had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.50 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.37 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 18.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Southwest Gas Corporation will post 3.03 EPS for the current year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.30%. Southwest Gas’s payout ratio is 79.74%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on SWX shares. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Southwest Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen lowered Southwest Gas from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, June 15th. Bank of America raised Southwest Gas from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $74.00 in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Southwest Gas from $79.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $75.00.

About 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.