Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) Upgraded at Bank of America

Key Points

• Bank of America upgraded Southwest Gas from "neutral" to "buy," with a new price target of $84.00, indicating a potential upside of 7.94% from the current stock price.
• Southwest Gas reported quarterly earnings of $0.53 EPS, exceeding analyst expectations of $0.42, although their revenue fell 5.2% year-over-year.
• Most analysts maintain a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Southwest Gas, with 92.77% of its shares owned by institutional investors.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Bank of America from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a $84.00 price objective on the utilities provider's stock, up from their previous price objective of $76.00. Bank of America's target price would suggest a potential upside of 7.94% from the stock's current price.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on SWX. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Southwest Gas from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the company from $74.00 to $82.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded Southwest Gas to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Southwest Gas from $79.00 to $75.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Southwest Gas from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $79.75.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SWX opened at $77.82 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.04, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.49. Southwest Gas has a 12 month low of $64.69 and a 12 month high of $80.54. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $77.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $74.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 6.98%. The business had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.25 EPS. The business's revenue was down 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Southwest Gas will post 3.03 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southwest Gas

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SWX. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in Southwest Gas by 20.9% during the second quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 880 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $65,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the period. BTC Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Southwest Gas by 5.0% during the second quarter. BTC Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,344 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $248,000 after buying an additional 159 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 21.3% in the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 939 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 44,098 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,280,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 10,673 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $794,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares during the period. 92.77% of the stock is 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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