Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Grows Position in Southwest Gas Corporation $SWX

Key Points

• Wedge Capital Management increased its stake in Southwest Gas Corporation by 58.4% in Q2, holding approximately $19.34 million worth of shares after acquiring an additional 95,894 shares.
• Several other institutional investors have also adjusted their holdings, with 92.77% of the stock owned by such investors, indicating strong institutional confidence in the company.
• Analysts have set a consensus target price of $81.25 for Southwest Gas, with varying ratings from "Strong Buy" to "Hold" based on recent adjustments to price targets from firms like Jefferies and Bank of America.

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE:SWX - Free Report) by 58.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 259,968 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 95,894 shares during the quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC owned approximately 0.36% of Southwest Gas worth $19,339,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of SWX. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 72.2% during the 1st quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,550,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $111,290,000 after acquiring an additional 650,000 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southwest Gas during the 1st quarter worth $31,686,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 208.2% during 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 during the period. Zimmer Partners LP raised its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 12.2% during the 1st quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 1,021,956 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $73,376,000 after purchasing an additional 111,341 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 217.3% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 154,568 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $11,098,000 after purchasing an additional 105,852 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.77% of the company's stock.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

NYSE SWX traded up $0.76 on Tuesday, reaching $79.27. The company had a trading volume of 143,487 shares, compared to its average volume of 425,060. 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 $5.71 billion, a PE ratio of 29.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.55. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $78.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $74.66. Southwest Gas Corporation has a 12 month low of $64.69 and a 12 month high of $80.54.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) last announced 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 company had revenue of $1.12 billion for 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%. Southwest Gas'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 firm posted $0.25 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Southwest Gas Corporation will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 17th will be issued a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 17th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Southwest Gas's payout ratio is 92.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on SWX. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Southwest Gas from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Southwest Gas from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $76.00 to $84.00 in a research report on Friday, August 29th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Southwest Gas from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Southwest Gas from $79.00 to $75.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. One 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Southwest Gas has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $81.25.

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.