Raymond James Financial Inc. Invests $6.95 Million in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 98,232 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,946,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.14% of Southwest Gas as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Southwest Gas by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,696,651 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $473,520,000 after purchasing an additional 38,710 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,322,085 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $234,905,000 after buying an additional 105,549 shares in the last quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC now owns 1,270,072 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $89,807,000 after buying an additional 4,235 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 990,723 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $70,054,000 after buying an additional 12,913 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 906,207 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $64,078,000 after buying an additional 43,030 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.77% of the company's stock.

Southwest Gas Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SWX traded down $0.36 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $72.39. 15,886 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 349,879. The company has a market cap of $5.20 billion, a PE ratio of 29.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.50. 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 has a 50 day moving average of $73.07 and a 200 day moving average of $73.75. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $64.31 and a 52-week high of $80.29.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.35 billion. Southwest Gas had a return on equity of 5.99% and a net margin of 3.44%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.03 EPS for the current year.

Southwest Gas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.43%. Southwest Gas's dividend payout ratio is presently 90.18%.

Insider Activity at Southwest Gas

In other Southwest Gas news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn sold 2,100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 owns 7,532,604 shares in the company, valued at approximately $561,932,258.40. This 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 can be accessed through this link. 0.39% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Southwest Gas to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Southwest Gas from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Southwest Gas in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a "hold" rating and a $73.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Southwest Gas has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $74.00.

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.