Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) Stock Holdings Lessened by BNP Paribas Financial Markets

BNP Paribas Financial Markets decreased its stake in shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX - Free Report) by 25.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 14,749 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 5,016 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets' holdings in Southwest Gas were worth $1,043,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in Southwest Gas by 48.2% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 590 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Southwest Gas by 18.8% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 937 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC increased its position in Southwest Gas by 94,500.0% during the fourth quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 946 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 945 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its position in Southwest Gas by 40.1% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,013 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its position in Southwest Gas by 54.0% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,832 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $200,000 after purchasing an additional 993 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.77% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on SWX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Southwest Gas from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Southwest Gas from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Bank of America raised shares of Southwest Gas from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $74.00 in a research report on Friday. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of Southwest Gas to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Southwest Gas presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $74.25.

Insider Activity at Southwest Gas

In related news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn sold 2,100,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.60, for a total transaction of $156,660,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,532,604 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $561,932,258.40. This trade represents a 21.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.39% of the company's stock.

Southwest Gas Trading Up 2.5%

Shares of Southwest Gas stock traded up $1.74 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $70.84. The company's stock had a trading volume of 324,406 shares, compared to its average volume of 361,136. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $64.31 and a 1-year high of $80.29. The business has a fifty day moving average of $71.83 and a 200 day moving average of $73.42. The company has a market capitalization of $5.09 billion, a PE ratio of 28.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 12th. The utilities provider reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $1.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.37 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 18.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.03 EPS for the current year.

Southwest Gas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared 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. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. Southwest Gas's payout ratio is 79.74%.

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.