Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) Stock Holdings Decreased by Moody Aldrich Partners LLC

Moody Aldrich Partners LLC lowered its stake in shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 130,871 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 3,702 shares during the quarter. Southwest Gas accounts for about 1.7% of Moody Aldrich Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC owned 0.18% of Southwest Gas worth $9,254,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Southwest Gas by 1.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,256,637 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $166,450,000 after purchasing an additional 22,013 shares in the last quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 18.5% in the third quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 1,765,148 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $130,197,000 after buying an additional 275,992 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 1.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,450,755 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $107,027,000 after buying an additional 19,922 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 3.7% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 977,810 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $72,123,000 after buying an additional 35,106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 0.9% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 654,930 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $48,308,000 after purchasing an additional 6,059 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Southwest Gas

In other news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn sold 1,390,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 9,632,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $739,206,030.96. The trade was a 12.61 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Gas Stock Performance

Shares of SWX stock opened at $73.82 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $72.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $73.17. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $57.55 and a 52 week high of $80.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The company has a market cap of $5.30 billion, a PE ratio of 29.77, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.43.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.09 earnings per share (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 firm had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.10 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.12 EPS for the current year.

Southwest Gas Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Southwest Gas’s payout ratio is currently 100.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on SWX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price 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. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $73.00 price target on shares of Southwest Gas in a report on Friday, December 13th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Southwest Gas in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Southwest Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Southwest Gas has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $73.80.

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.