EntryPoint Capital LLC Raises Holdings in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

EntryPoint Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) by 91.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 5,622 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,684 shares during the quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC’s holdings in Southwest Gas were worth $398,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 20.6% during the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 135,490 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,580,000 after purchasing an additional 23,180 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,696,651 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $473,520,000 after purchasing an additional 38,710 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Southwest Gas by 25.9% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 12,358 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $874,000 after buying an additional 2,541 shares in the last quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. grew its position in Southwest Gas by 178.3% during the fourth quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. now owns 12,016 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $850,000 after buying an additional 7,699 shares during the period. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in Southwest Gas in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,937,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Southwest Gas

In other news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn sold 2,100,000 shares of Southwest Gas stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.60, for a total value of $156,660,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,532,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $561,932,258.40. The trade was a 21.80 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.39% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Southwest Gas Stock Performance

NYSE SWX opened at $72.08 on Thursday. 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 fifty-two week low of $64.31 and a fifty-two week high of $80.29. The business has a fifty day moving average of $74.89 and a 200-day moving average of $74.02. The stock has a market cap of $5.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.37.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last released its 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. The firm had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.35 billion. Southwest Gas had a net margin of 3.44% and a return on equity of 5.99%. As a group, analysts predict that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

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. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 90.18%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Bank of America reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $73.00 price target on shares of Southwest Gas in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Southwest Gas in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued 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 research report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Southwest Gas from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $74.00.

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.