Prudential Financial Inc. Has $9.58 Million Stock Holdings in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

Prudential Financial Inc. raised its stake in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX - Free Report) by 20.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 135,490 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 23,180 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. owned about 0.19% of Southwest Gas worth $9,580,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its stake in Southwest Gas by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 16,650 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,177,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 8,979 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $635,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the period. 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 valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its position in Southwest Gas by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 15,766 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,115,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the period. Finally, Clear Creek Financial Management LLC raised its stake in Southwest Gas by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 3,427 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $242,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. 92.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Insider Activity at Southwest Gas

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 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 in the company, 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.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of Southwest Gas to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective 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. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Southwest Gas in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a "hold" rating and a $73.00 target price for the company. Finally, Bank of America restated an "underperform" rating and issued a $73.00 price target on shares of Southwest Gas in a research report on Friday, December 13th. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $74.00.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

NYSE:SWX traded down $0.90 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $72.27. The stock had a trading volume of 538,925 shares, compared to its average volume of 355,075. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $74.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $74.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $64.31 and a 12 month high of $80.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.19 billion, a PE ratio of 29.14, a P/E/G ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.50.

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

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Southwest Gas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 90.18%.

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.