Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Decreases Position in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lessened its holdings in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 300 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Southwest Gas were worth $1,232,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Spirit of America Management Corp NY boosted its position in Southwest Gas by 10.4% in the 3rd quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY now owns 2,650 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $195,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the period. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 14.7% during the 3rd quarter. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC now owns 134,573 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,926,000 after purchasing an additional 17,227 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 7,276.0% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 51,042 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,765,000 after purchasing an additional 50,350 shares during the last quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas during the 3rd quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 37.5% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 789 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southwest Gas

In other Southwest Gas news, CFO Robert J. Stefani sold 767 shares of Southwest Gas stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.14, for a total value of $56,098.38. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 43,438 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,177,055.32. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.39% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SWX opened at $72.05 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $73.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $73.55. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $57.03 and a 12 month high of $78.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.59, a P/E/G ratio of 3.82 and a beta of 0.38.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.17). Southwest Gas had a return on equity of 6.18% and a net margin of 3.44%. The company had revenue of $1.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.47 earnings per share. Southwest Gas’s revenue was down 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.44%. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio is presently 98.41%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SWX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Southwest Gas from $78.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective 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.

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.