Graham Capital Management L.P. Has $1.07 Million Stake in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

Graham Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) by 54.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 15,168 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 5,331 shares during the period. Graham Capital Management L.P.’s holdings in Southwest Gas were worth $1,073,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its stake in Southwest Gas by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 16,650 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,177,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Southwest Gas by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 8,979 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $635,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Southwest Gas by 18.8% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 937 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its stake in Southwest Gas by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 15,766 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,115,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the period. Finally, Clear Creek Financial Management LLC lifted its stake in Southwest Gas by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 3,427 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $242,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.77% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Gas Trading Down 2.3%

NYSE SWX opened at $68.16 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $4.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.48, a P/E/G ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $72.59 and its 200-day moving average is $73.65. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $64.31 and a one year high of $80.29.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 12th. The utilities provider reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $1.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.50 billion. Southwest Gas had a return on equity of 5.99% and a net margin of 3.44%. Southwest Gas’s quarterly revenue was down 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.37 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.64%. Southwest Gas’s payout ratio is presently 79.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com lowered Southwest Gas from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Southwest Gas from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Southwest Gas in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “hold” rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Southwest Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Southwest Gas currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $74.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Southwest Gas news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn sold 2,100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,532,604 shares in the company, 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.51% of the stock is 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.