Fmr LLC Has $234.91 Million Position in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX - Free Report) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,322,085 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 105,549 shares during the period. FMR LLC owned 4.63% of Southwest Gas worth $234,905,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in Southwest Gas by 48.2% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 590 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. increased its position in Southwest Gas by 206.2% in the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 845 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 569 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC raised its stake in Southwest Gas by 94,500.0% during the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 946 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 945 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 54.0% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,832 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $200,000 after purchasing an additional 993 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.77% of the company's stock.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Southwest Gas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SWX traded up $0.78 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $72.86. The company had a trading volume of 318,211 shares, compared to its average volume of 357,691. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $64.31 and a 52 week high of $80.29. The business's 50-day moving average is $73.91 and its 200 day moving average is $73.78. The company has a market cap of $5.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.38, a PEG ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $1.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.35 billion. Southwest Gas had a return on equity of 5.99% and a net margin of 3.44%. Equities research analysts predict that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Southwest Gas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 90.18%.

Insider Transactions at Southwest Gas

In other news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn sold 2,100,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.39% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.