Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) Rating Lowered to "Strong Sell" at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Southwest Gas has been downgraded by Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating, indicating a significant shift in market sentiment towards the stock.
• While Zacks lowered its rating, some brokerages like Bank of America have upgraded the company's rating from "neutral" to "buy," raising their price target significantly.
• Analyst consensus indicates a mixed outlook, with a current average price target of $82.33 and the stock recently trading at $77.88, signaling potential volatility ahead.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on SWX. Bank of America raised Southwest Gas from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $76.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Friday, August 29th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Southwest Gas from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Southwest Gas from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Southwest Gas in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $82.33.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

SWX opened at $77.88 on Monday. Southwest Gas has a 12-month low of $64.69 and a 12-month high of $80.57. The company has a market cap of $5.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.55. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $78.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $75.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.11. Southwest Gas had a return on equity of 6.98% and a net margin of 4.06%.The firm had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.25 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Southwest Gas will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Southwest Gas news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn sold 1,500,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.91, for a total transaction of $116,865,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 6,032,604 shares in the company, valued at $470,000,177.64. This represents a 19.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Southwest Gas

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in SWX. Private Trust Co. NA acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 1,055.0% during the 1st 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. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 223.5% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 440 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. Simplex Trading LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC boosted its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 144.0% during the 1st quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 510 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 301 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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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