Keeley Teton Advisors LLC Raises Stock Position in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

Keeley Teton Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX - Free Report) by 11.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 107,910 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 11,436 shares during the quarter. Southwest Gas comprises 0.9% of Keeley Teton Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Keeley Teton Advisors LLC owned about 0.15% of Southwest Gas worth $7,630,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 48.2% during 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 stake in shares of 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 worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 569 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 18.8% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 937 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 94,500.0% in the fourth quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 946 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 945 shares during the period. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its position in Southwest Gas by 40.1% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,013 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.77% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Southwest Gas in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a "hold" rating and a $73.00 price target for the company. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Southwest Gas to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Southwest Gas from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southwest Gas currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $74.00.

Southwest Gas Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:SWX traded up $0.25 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $73.51. 247,578 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 352,642. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $64.31 and a 1 year high of $80.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $73.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $73.77. The firm has a market cap of $5.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.64, a P/E/G ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.50.

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

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

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 paid a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Southwest Gas's payout ratio is 90.18%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southwest Gas

In related 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 shares were sold at an average price of $74.60, for a total value of $156,660,000.00. Following 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.39% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.