Man Group plc Makes New $9.82 Million Investment in Southwest Gas Corporation $SWX

Man Group plc acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE:SWX - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 110,713 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $9,818,000. Man Group plc owned approximately 0.15% of Southwest Gas at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 10,837 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $867,000 after buying an additional 132 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its position in Southwest Gas by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 10,431 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $835,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Southwest Gas by 8.5% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,960 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $174,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC raised its stake in Southwest Gas by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 14,500 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,160,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System raised its stake in Southwest Gas by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 17,184 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,375,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. 92.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Southwest Gas Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SWX opened at $88.94 on Friday. Southwest Gas Corporation has a twelve month low of $76.59 and a twelve month high of $94.46. The firm has a market cap of $6.44 billion, a PE ratio of 11.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 1.12. The business has a fifty day moving average of $90.83 and a 200-day moving average of $89.28.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.45. Southwest Gas had a net margin of 31.85% and a return on equity of 6.79%. The business had revenue of $358.15 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $416.20 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.18) EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Southwest Gas has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.170-4.320 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Southwest Gas Corporation will post 4.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a dividend of $0.645 per share. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. Southwest Gas's dividend payout ratio is presently 33.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on SWX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Southwest Gas from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $100.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Southwest Gas from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. UBS Group set a $100.00 price target on shares of Southwest Gas in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Southwest Gas from a "buy (a-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Southwest Gas from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $100.67.

Southwest Gas Profile

Southwest Gas Corporation NYSE: SWX is a publicly traded natural gas utility that provides regulated gas distribution services to residential, commercial, industrial and electric generation customers. The company's core activities include the transportation, distribution and sale of natural gas through an extensive network of pipelines, service lines and metering facilities. Southwest Gas also offers related services such as system maintenance, pipeline safety inspections, emergency response and line extensions to support customer growth and ensure reliable gas delivery.

Founded in 1931 in southern Nevada, Southwest Gas has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to become one of the nation's larger natural gas utilities by customer count.

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