Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) Stock Rating Upgraded by Zacks Research

Key Points

• Southwest Gas has been upgraded by Zacks Research from a "strong sell" to a "hold" rating, reflecting a shift in analyst sentiment towards the stock.
• Bank of America recently raised its rating on Southwest Gas from "neutral" to "buy," increasing the target price from $76.00 to $84.00.
• Major shareholder Carl C. Icahn sold 1.5 million shares of Southwest Gas, reducing his stake by nearly 20%, which signals a notable insider transaction.

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

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Southwest Gas in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Bank of America raised shares of Southwest Gas from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $76.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Friday, August 29th. 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 research report on Wednesday, September 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Southwest Gas from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $82.33.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

Shares of SWX stock opened at $79.52 on Monday. Southwest Gas has a twelve month low of $64.69 and a twelve month high of $80.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $78.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $75.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.55.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.25 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Southwest Gas will post 3.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Southwest Gas news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn sold 1,500,000 shares of the company's 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 approximately $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 can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Southwest Gas

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SWX. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Southwest Gas by 1,055.0% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 462 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 422 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 78.8% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 869 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 383 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its holdings in Southwest Gas by 2.8% during the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 7,061 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $506,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Southwest Gas by 2,127.3% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,225 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $88,000 after acquiring an additional 1,170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Southwest Gas by 5.8% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 22,688 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,629,000 after purchasing an additional 1,242 shares in the last quarter. 92.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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