Strs Ohio Purchases 9,200 Shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

Strs Ohio increased its position in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) by 180.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,200 shares during the quarter. Strs Ohio’s holdings in Southwest Gas were worth $905,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Phocas Financial Corp. boosted its holdings in Southwest Gas by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Phocas Financial Corp. now owns 47,558 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,013,000 after purchasing an additional 845 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in Southwest Gas in the 4th quarter valued at $1,071,000. Optas LLC grew its position in Southwest Gas by 20.9% in the fourth quarter. Optas LLC now owns 5,500 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $348,000 after acquiring an additional 951 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Southwest Gas during the fourth quarter worth $333,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in Southwest Gas by 17.1% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 18,039 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,143,000 after acquiring an additional 2,634 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on SWX shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Southwest Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 27th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Southwest Gas from $64.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

Shares of SWX stock opened at $75.19 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $70.92 and its 200-day moving average is $64.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.12. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $53.79 and a 52 week high of $76.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.39 billion, a PE ratio of 35.47, a PEG ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 0.36.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 28th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.16. Southwest Gas had a net margin of 2.78% and a return on equity of 7.28%. The firm had revenue of $1.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.27 billion. Equities research analysts expect that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 116.98%.

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.