Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) Shares Sold by Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd

Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd trimmed its stake in shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX - Free Report) by 27.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,779 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 4,487 shares during the quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd's holdings in Southwest Gas were worth $833,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Trexquant Investment LP grew its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 144.3% in the 4th quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 139,144 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $9,839,000 after buying an additional 82,192 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Southwest Gas during the fourth quarter valued at $51,011,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Southwest Gas by 83.3% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 505,555 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $35,748,000 after purchasing an additional 229,739 shares during the period. EntryPoint Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 91.4% in the fourth quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 5,622 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $398,000 after purchasing an additional 2,684 shares during the period. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 20.6% during the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 135,490 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $9,580,000 after purchasing an additional 23,180 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.77% of the company's stock.

Remove Ads

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Southwest Gas 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 value of $156,660,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,532,604 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $561,932,258.40. This trade represents a 21.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on SWX. Bank of America reiterated an "underperform" rating and set a $73.00 target price on shares of Southwest Gas in a research report on Friday, December 13th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded Southwest Gas to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Southwest Gas from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Southwest Gas in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a "hold" rating and a $73.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $74.00.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SWX traded up $1.04 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $70.56. The stock had a trading volume of 83,308 shares, compared to its average volume of 415,428. 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 $5.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.50. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $64.31 and a 1 year high of $80.29. The business's 50 day moving average price is $74.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $73.83.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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 net margin of 3.44% and a return on equity of 5.99%. Research analysts expect that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.51%. Southwest Gas's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.