Graham Capital Management L.P. Raises Position in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

Graham Capital Management L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX - Free Report) by 54.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,168 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 5,331 shares during the period. Graham Capital Management L.P.'s holdings in Southwest Gas were worth $1,073,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in SWX. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Southwest Gas during the 4th quarter valued at $51,011,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 111.8% during the 4th quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 900,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $63,639,000 after purchasing an additional 475,000 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 83.3% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 505,555 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $35,748,000 after purchasing an additional 229,739 shares during the last quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 328.1% during the 4th quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 223,746 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $15,821,000 after purchasing an additional 171,478 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,322,085 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $234,905,000 after purchasing an additional 105,549 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.77% of the company's stock.

Southwest Gas Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of SWX traded down $0.21 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $68.98. 419,282 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 356,709. The company's fifty day moving average price is $72.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $73.54. The company has a market capitalization of $4.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $64.31 and a 12 month high of $80.29.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The utilities provider reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.04. Southwest Gas had a net margin of 3.44% and a return on equity of 5.99%. The firm had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.37 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 18.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.60%. Southwest Gas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 79.74%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Southwest Gas from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Southwest Gas from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of Southwest Gas to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $74.00.

Insider Activity at Southwest Gas

In related news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn sold 2,100,000 shares of Southwest Gas stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.60, for a total transaction of $156,660,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,532,604 shares of the company's stock, valued at $561,932,258.40. This trade represents a 21.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.