24,541 Shares in Southwest Gas Corporation $SWX Purchased by Jump Financial LLC

Key Points

• Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Southwest Gas Corporation, purchasing 24,541 shares valued at approximately $1.76 million.
• Institutional investors own 92.77% of Southwest Gas's stock, signaling strong interest from large financial entities.
• Southwest Gas reported $0.53 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, despite a 5.2% year-over-year decline in revenue.

Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE:SWX - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 24,541 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,762,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its position in Southwest Gas by 2.8% in the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 7,061 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $506,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its position in Southwest Gas by 1.4% during the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 14,429 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,036,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its position in Southwest Gas by 1.2% during the first quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 16,900 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,213,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Mariner LLC boosted its position in Southwest Gas by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 10,146 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $717,000 after buying an additional 207 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in Southwest Gas by 41.2% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 833 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the period. 92.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on SWX. Bank of America upgraded shares of Southwest Gas from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the company from $76.00 to $84.00 in a research report on Friday. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Southwest Gas to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Southwest Gas from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the company from $74.00 to $82.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Southwest Gas from $79.00 to $75.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Southwest Gas from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. One equities research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $79.75.

Southwest Gas Trading Up 2.5%

Shares of NYSE:SWX traded up $1.97 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $79.81. 458,956 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 376,027. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.74 billion, a PE ratio of 29.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.49. The business's 50 day moving average is $77.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $74.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.01 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.

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