Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC Reduces Stock Position in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC decreased its holdings in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) by 17.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,885 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,031 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC’s holdings in Southwest Gas were worth $345,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in SWX. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in Southwest Gas by 48.2% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 590 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its stake in Southwest Gas by 206.2% in the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 845 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 569 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC lifted its holdings in Southwest Gas by 94,500.0% during the fourth quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 946 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 945 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 54.0% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,832 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $200,000 after acquiring an additional 993 shares during the period. 92.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on SWX shares. Bank of America reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $73.00 price objective on shares of Southwest Gas in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Southwest Gas in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of Southwest Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Southwest Gas from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $74.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn sold 2,100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.60, for a total transaction of $156,660,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Gas Stock Performance

SWX opened at $66.99 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $74.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $73.91. The company has a market cap of $4.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $64.31 and a 52-week high of $80.29.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last issued 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 during 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%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.03 EPS 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. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given 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 yield of 3.70%. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.