Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) Hits New 1-Year High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Southwest Gas Corporation shares have reached a new 52-week high of $80.57, indicating strong performance and trading interest.
• Wall Street analysts are generally optimistic, with multiple upgrades; Bank of America raised its target price to $84.00 and several firms issued "buy" ratings.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.62 per share, representing a yield of 3.1%, with payments scheduled for December 1st.

Shares of Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Friday . The company traded as high as $80.57 and last traded at $80.27, with a volume of 23948 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $79.33.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SWX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Bank of America raised Southwest Gas from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the company from $76.00 to $84.00 in a report on Friday, August 29th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Southwest Gas in a report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen raised Southwest Gas from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Southwest Gas from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $82.33.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $78.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $75.02. 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 cap of $5.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.55.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 return on equity of 6.98% and a net margin of 4.06%.The firm's quarterly revenue was down 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.25 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Southwest Gas Corporation will post 3.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Southwest Gas

In related news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn sold 1,500,000 shares of Southwest Gas stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.91, for a total transaction of $116,865,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 6,032,604 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $470,000,177.64. This trade represents a 19.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.39% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Southwest Gas

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Maverick Capital Ltd. grew its holdings in Southwest Gas by 9.1% during the 2nd quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 1,993,671 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $148,309,000 after buying an additional 167,114 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its holdings in Southwest Gas by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,620,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $120,512,000 after buying an additional 70,000 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Southwest Gas by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,544,405 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $114,902,000 after buying an additional 54,318 shares in the last quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC grew its holdings in Southwest Gas by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 1,048,497 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $77,998,000 after buying an additional 75,182 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zimmer Partners LP grew its holdings in 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 buying an additional 111,341 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.77% of the company's stock.

Southwest Gas Company 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.

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