Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Has $290,000 Holdings in Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE:SWX)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC cut its stake in shares of Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE:SWX) by 22.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,027 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,193 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Southwest Gas were worth $290,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of SWX. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 2,127.3% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,225 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 1,170 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 2.8% in the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 7,061 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $506,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 20.4% in the first quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 152,925 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $10,980,000 after purchasing an additional 25,920 shares during the period. Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Southwest Gas in the first quarter valued at $607,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Southwest Gas in the first quarter valued at $952,000. 92.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SWX has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded Southwest Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Bank of America upgraded Southwest Gas from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $74.00 in a report on Friday, May 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Southwest Gas from $79.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Southwest Gas from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $74.00 to $82.00 in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Southwest Gas from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Southwest Gas currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $77.25.

Southwest Gas Stock Performance

Shares of Southwest Gas stock opened at $77.11 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $72.74 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $72.99. Southwest Gas Corporation has a 1-year low of $64.31 and a 1-year high of $80.29. The company has a market cap of $5.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.79, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.48.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last issued its quarterly 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.50 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.37 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 18.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Southwest Gas Corporation will post 3.03 EPS for the current year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.22%. Southwest Gas’s payout ratio is currently 79.74%.

Southwest Gas 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.