New York State Teachers Retirement System Has $4.57 Million Position in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

New York State Teachers Retirement System reduced its stake in shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 61,997 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Southwest Gas were worth $4,573,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of SWX. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in Southwest Gas by 67.2% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 398 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 154.8% during the 2nd 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 bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 96.6% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 574 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Southwest Gas during the second quarter valued at approximately $49,000. 92.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southwest Gas Stock Up 2.6 %

Shares of Southwest Gas stock opened at $73.69 on Wednesday. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $57.03 and a 12-month high of $78.46. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $73.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $73.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.24, a PEG ratio of 3.74 and a beta of 0.38.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.17). The firm had revenue of $1.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.20 billion. Southwest Gas had a return on equity of 6.18% and a net margin of 3.44%. Southwest Gas’s quarterly revenue was down 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.47 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Gas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio is currently 98.41%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Insider Transactions at Southwest Gas

In related news, CFO Robert J. Stefani sold 767 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 43,438 shares in the company, valued at $3,177,055.32. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.39% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.