Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Has $45.67 Million Stock Holdings in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 648,871 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 17,069 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 0.91% of Southwest Gas worth $45,668,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SWX. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Southwest Gas by 154.8% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 428 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 96.6% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 574 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas during the 2nd quarter valued at $49,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas during the 2nd quarter valued at $72,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 461.9% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,371 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $87,000 after acquiring an additional 1,127 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SWX has been the subject of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Southwest Gas from $78.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Southwest Gas from $77.00 to $74.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

SWX opened at $74.24 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $56.17 and a 12 month high of $78.46. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $72.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $73.39. The stock has a market cap of $5.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.81, a P/E/G ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 0.38.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.17). Southwest Gas had a net margin of 3.44% and a return on equity of 6.18%. The firm had revenue of $1.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.47 EPS. Southwest Gas’s quarterly revenue was down 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.2 EPS for the current year.

Southwest Gas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.34%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 92.88%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Southwest Gas news, CFO Robert J. Stefani sold 767 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.14, for a total transaction of $56,098.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 43,438 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,177,055.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

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.