Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) Shares Sold by Phocas Financial Corp.

Phocas Financial Corp. cut its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) by 5.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 42,825 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,657 shares during the period. Phocas Financial Corp. owned 0.06% of Southwest Gas worth $3,159,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SWX. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in Southwest Gas by 67.2% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 398 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 154.8% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 428 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Gas in the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Southwest Gas by 96.6% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 574 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Southwest Gas during the 2nd quarter worth about $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.77% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Gas Stock Up 2.2 %

NYSE SWX opened at $79.11 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $74.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $73.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $5.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.90, a P/E/G ratio of 4.07 and a beta of 0.38. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $57.55 and a one year high of $79.20.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by $0.02. Southwest Gas had a return on equity of 5.99% and a net margin of 3.44%. The business had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.10 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 100.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southwest Gas

In related news, CFO Robert J. Stefani sold 767 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.14, for a total transaction of $56,098.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 43,438 shares in the company, valued at $3,177,055.32. This trade represents a 1.74 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on SWX shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Southwest Gas from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Southwest Gas from $78.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 15th.

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.