Phocas Financial Corp. Cuts Holdings in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

Phocas Financial Corp. trimmed its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) by 85.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,412 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 36,413 shares during the period. Phocas Financial Corp.’s holdings in Southwest Gas were worth $453,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 906,207 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $64,078,000 after acquiring an additional 43,030 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 279,607 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $19,771,000 after acquiring an additional 12,018 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 15,766 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,115,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 216,942 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $15,340,000 after acquiring an additional 2,119 shares during the period. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 27.5% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 5,487 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $388,000 after acquiring an additional 1,184 shares during the period. 92.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SWX opened at $75.42 on Thursday. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $61.37 and a one year high of $80.29. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $73.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $73.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market cap of $5.41 billion, a PE ratio of 30.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.44.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.35 billion. On average, analysts forecast that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

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 3.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 100.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on SWX shares. Bank of America restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $73.00 price target on shares of Southwest Gas in a report on Friday, December 13th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded Southwest Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Southwest Gas in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “hold” rating and a $73.00 target price on the stock. Finally, 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 report on Tuesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $73.80.

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.