Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Has $1.74 Million Position in Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE:SWX)

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd lifted its position in shares of Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE:SWX - Free Report) by 75.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 24,221 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 10,445 shares during the quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd's holdings in Southwest Gas were worth $1,739,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of SWX. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 1,055.0% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 462 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 422 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 1,001.8% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 606 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 551 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in Southwest Gas by 41.2% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 833 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 78.8% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 869 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 383 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 40.1% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,013 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 290 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.77% of the company's stock.

Southwest Gas Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SWX traded up $0.06 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $78.43. 224,750 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 481,766. Southwest Gas Corporation has a twelve month low of $64.31 and a twelve month high of $80.29. The firm has a market cap of $5.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.22, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.48. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $73.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $73.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The utilities provider reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. Southwest Gas had a return on equity of 6.76% and a net margin of 4.66%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.37 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Southwest Gas Corporation will post 3.03 EPS for the current year.

Southwest Gas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.16%. Southwest Gas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 79.74%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SWX has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Bank of America upgraded Southwest Gas from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $74.00 in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Southwest Gas from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $74.00 to $82.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Southwest Gas to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Southwest Gas from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Southwest Gas from $79.00 to $75.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Southwest Gas currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $77.25.

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.