Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Has $4.81 Million Holdings in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC increased its stake in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX - Free Report) by 94.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 75,923 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 36,900 shares during the quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC owned 0.11% of Southwest Gas worth $4,810,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Xponance Inc. increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 8.8% during the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 9,522 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $603,000 after acquiring an additional 768 shares in the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 1,183,049 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $74,946,000 after acquiring an additional 7,143 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 14,099 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $893,000 after acquiring an additional 1,260 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 180.4% during the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 14,300 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $905,000 after acquiring an additional 9,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Phocas Financial Corp. increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Phocas Financial Corp. now owns 47,558 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,013,000 after acquiring an additional 845 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.77% of the company's stock.

Southwest Gas Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE SWX traded up $0.30 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $73.48. 675,034 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 446,703. The company has a market capitalization of $5.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.66, a P/E/G ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.36. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $53.79 and a 52-week high of $76.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $69.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $63.78.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $1.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.27 billion. Southwest Gas had a net margin of 2.78% and a return on equity of 7.28%. Equities research analysts expect that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.38%. Southwest Gas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 116.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SWX has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Southwest Gas from $64.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Southwest Gas from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 27th.

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.