Cibc World Markets Corp Takes Position in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new stake in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 5,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $403,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of SWX. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its stake in Southwest Gas by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 3,245 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $229,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares in the last quarter. Vestcor Inc acquired a new position in Southwest Gas during the 4th quarter worth about $433,000. Swiss National Bank lifted its stake in Southwest Gas by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 112,800 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,976,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Southwest Gas by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 4,023 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $284,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Channing Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Southwest Gas by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC now owns 1,270,072 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $89,807,000 after acquiring an additional 4,235 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.77% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SWX has been the topic of several research reports. Bank of America reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $73.00 target price on shares of Southwest Gas in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Southwest Gas in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “hold” rating and a $73.00 target price on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded Southwest Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Southwest Gas from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Southwest Gas has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $74.00.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SWX opened at $75.18 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $74.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $73.97. 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 1-year low of $64.31 and a 1-year high of $80.29. The company has a market cap of $5.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.37.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.35 billion. Analysts forecast that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.03 EPS for the current fiscal 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 issued a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.30%. Southwest Gas’s payout ratio is currently 90.18%.

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.