O Keefe Stevens Advisory Inc. Makes New $599,000 Investment in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

O Keefe Stevens Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 8,121 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $599,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Southwest Gas by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 186,570 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $11,819,000 after purchasing an additional 11,780 shares during the period. Tortoise Index Solutions LLC lifted its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Tortoise Index Solutions LLC now owns 118,534 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,509,000 after acquiring an additional 5,777 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL increased its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 858,363 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $54,377,000 after acquiring an additional 6,283 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in Southwest Gas during the fourth quarter worth about $239,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Southwest Gas by 24.4% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,059,348 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $67,110,000 after purchasing an additional 207,798 shares during the period. 92.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Southwest Gas

In related news, CFO Robert J. Stefani sold 767 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.14, for a total value of $56,098.38. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 43,438 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,177,055.32. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Southwest Gas from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Southwest Gas from $78.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 15th.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

SWX stock opened at $73.85 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $5.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.66, a PEG ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $72.25 and a 200-day moving average of $73.59. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $56.17 and a 12-month high of $78.46.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.17). The firm had revenue of $1.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.20 billion. Southwest Gas had a return on equity of 6.18% and a net margin of 3.44%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.47 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.36%. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio is presently 92.88%.

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.