Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd Purchases 3,290 Shares of Southwest Gas Corporation $SWX

Key Points

• Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd increased its holdings in Southwest Gas Corporation by 27.9% to a total of $1.08 million as of the first quarter, now owning 15,069 shares.
• Southwest Gas recently reported earnings of $0.53 EPS, exceeding analyst expectations of $0.42 EPS, despite 5.2% year-over-year revenue decline.
• Analysts have varied views on Southwest Gas, with upgrades from Bank of America and Jefferies, raising the price target to $84 and $82 respectively, while JPMorgan lowered its target to $75.

Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd grew its position in Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE:SWX - Free Report) by 27.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 15,069 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,290 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd's holdings in Southwest Gas were worth $1,082,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Petrus Trust Company LTA acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas in the 1st quarter valued at $521,000. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 74.7% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 209,934 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $15,073,000 after purchasing an additional 89,761 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 26.7% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 43,930 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,154,000 after purchasing an additional 9,250 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 208.2% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 227,415 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $16,299,000 after purchasing an additional 153,637 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 72.2% in the 1st quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,550,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $111,290,000 after purchasing an additional 650,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.77% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on SWX shares. Bank of America upgraded shares of Southwest Gas from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $76.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Friday, August 29th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Southwest Gas from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Southwest Gas from $79.00 to $75.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Southwest Gas from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $81.25.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

Shares of Southwest Gas stock traded down $0.54 during trading on Friday, reaching $78.56. The company's stock had a trading volume of 369,479 shares, compared to its average volume of 353,490. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $77.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $74.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. Southwest Gas Corporation has a one year low of $64.69 and a one year high of $80.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.65 billion, a P/E 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.17 billion. Southwest Gas had a return on equity of 6.98% and a net margin of 4.06%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.25 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Southwest Gas Corporation will post 3.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.