27,784 Shares in Southwest Gas Corporation $SWX Bought by Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC

Key Points

• Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC has acquired a new stake in Southwest Gas Corporation by purchasing 27,784 shares valued at approximately $1,995,000.
• Several large investors have also increased their holdings in Southwest Gas, contributing to institutional ownership of 92.77% of the company's stock.
• Southwest Gas recently reported quarterly earnings, exceeding estimates with an EPS of $0.53, but revenue fell short of expectations at $1.12 billion, down 5.2% year-over-year.

Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE:SWX - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 27,784 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,995,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Southwest Gas by 1,055.0% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 462 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 422 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC increased its stake in Southwest Gas by 144.0% during the 1st quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 510 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 301 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Southwest Gas by 1,001.8% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 606 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 551 shares during the period. Quarry LP increased its stake in Southwest Gas by 118.3% during the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 751 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 407 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in Southwest Gas by 41.2% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 833 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the period. 92.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on SWX. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Southwest Gas from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Southwest Gas from $79.00 to $75.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Southwest Gas from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded Southwest Gas from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $76.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Friday, August 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Southwest Gas presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $81.25.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

Shares of SWX traded down $0.54 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $78.56. The company's stock had a trading volume of 369,479 shares, compared to its average volume of 353,490. Southwest Gas Corporation has a one year low of $64.69 and a one year high of $80.54. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $77.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $74.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.55.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.11. Southwest Gas had a return on equity of 6.98% and a net margin of 4.06%.The company had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.25 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Southwest Gas Corporation will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Southwest Gas

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.