Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) Lowered to Sell Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Southwest Gas from “Hold” to “Sell,” despite the broader analyst consensus remaining “Buy,” with a consensus price target of $98.29.
• Southwest Gas reported quarterly EPS of $0.45, in line with estimates, but revenue of $358.15 million fell short of the $416.20 million forecast and declined 9.6% year over year.
• Shares opened at $92.28, near their 12-month high of $94.46, while institutional investors and hedge funds collectively owned 92.77% of the company.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Southwest Gas from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $100.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Southwest Gas from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group set a $100.00 target price on Southwest Gas in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Mizuho set a $103.00 price target on Southwest Gas in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on Southwest Gas from $99.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $98.29.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SWX opened at $92.28 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.05, a PEG ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.57. Southwest Gas has a 12 month low of $75.75 and a 12 month high of $94.46. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $89.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $88.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 1.32.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.45. Southwest Gas had a net margin of 31.85% and a return on equity of 6.91%. The firm had revenue of $358.15 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $416.20 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.18) EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Southwest Gas has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.170-4.320 EPS. Analysts expect that Southwest Gas will post 4.25 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southwest Gas

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its stake in Southwest Gas by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 10,837 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $867,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its position in Southwest Gas by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 10,431 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $835,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 8.5% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,960 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $174,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 14,500 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,160,000 after buying an additional 159 shares during the period. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 17,184 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,375,000 after buying an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. 92.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southwest Gas Company Profile

Southwest Gas Corporation NYSE: SWX is a publicly traded natural gas utility that provides regulated gas distribution services to residential, commercial, industrial and electric generation customers. The company's core activities include the transportation, distribution and sale of natural gas through an extensive network of pipelines, service lines and metering facilities. Southwest Gas also offers related services such as system maintenance, pipeline safety inspections, emergency response and line extensions to support customer growth and ensure reliable gas delivery.

Founded in 1931 in southern Nevada, Southwest Gas has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to become one of the nation's larger natural gas utilities by customer count.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source