Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) Given New $75.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) had its price target reduced by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $79.00 to $75.00 in a research note published on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on SWX. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Southwest Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Bank of America raised Southwest Gas from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $74.00 in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Southwest Gas from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $75.00.

Southwest Gas Stock Performance

Southwest Gas stock opened at $71.89 on Wednesday. Southwest Gas has a 52 week low of $64.31 and a 52 week high of $80.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The stock has a market cap of $5.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.48. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $71.58 and a 200-day moving average of $73.32.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The utilities provider reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.04. Southwest Gas had a net margin of 3.44% and a return on equity of 5.99%. The firm had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.37 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Southwest Gas will post 3.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.45%. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 79.74%.

Insider Transactions at Southwest Gas

In other Southwest Gas news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn sold 2,100,000 shares of Southwest Gas 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. The trade was a 21.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Southwest Gas

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SWX. Strs Ohio bought a new position in Southwest Gas during the 1st quarter worth $1,163,000. WBI Investments LLC bought a new stake in Southwest Gas in the first quarter valued at $1,880,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Southwest Gas by 105.9% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 22,748 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,631,000 after buying an additional 11,700 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 18.0% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 40,670 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,920,000 after acquiring an additional 6,210 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC grew its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 217.3% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 154,568 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $11,098,000 after acquiring an additional 105,852 shares during the last quarter. 92.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southwest Gas Company 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.