Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Buys 5,699 Shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) by 33.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 22,515 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,699 shares during the period. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in Southwest Gas were worth $1,592,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its stake in Southwest Gas by 19.9% during the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 11,784 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $833,000 after acquiring an additional 1,954 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. raised its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 8,588 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $607,000 after purchasing an additional 406 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas during the 4th quarter worth $403,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 3,245 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $229,000 after purchasing an additional 391 shares during the period. Finally, Vestcor Inc bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas during the 4th quarter worth $433,000. 92.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Southwest Gas Stock Down 1.1 %

SWX stock opened at $75.18 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.40 billion, a PE ratio of 30.32, a PEG ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.37. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $64.31 and a twelve month high of $80.29. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $74.66 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $73.95.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.18. Southwest Gas had a return on equity of 5.99% and a net margin of 3.44%. The business had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.35 billion. On average, equities analysts predict that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Southwest Gas’s payout ratio is 90.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on SWX shares. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $73.00 target price on shares of Southwest Gas in a research note on Friday, December 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Southwest Gas from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded Southwest Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Southwest Gas in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $73.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Southwest Gas currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $74.00.

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.