Fox Run Management L.L.C. Has $850,000 Stake in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

Fox Run Management L.L.C. lifted its position in shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) by 178.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,016 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,699 shares during the quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C.’s holdings in Southwest Gas were worth $850,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 599.0% during the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 9,877 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $729,000 after acquiring an additional 8,464 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 234.1% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 53,403 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,939,000 after acquiring an additional 37,418 shares in the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 31.1% during the 4th quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 110,817 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $7,836,000 after acquiring an additional 26,300 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas during the 4th quarter valued at $1,000,000. Finally, O Keefe Stevens Advisory Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 45.0% during the 4th quarter. O Keefe Stevens Advisory Inc. now owns 11,775 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $833,000 after acquiring an additional 3,654 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.77% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Gas Stock Performance

SWX stock opened at $75.18 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $74.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $73.97. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $64.31 and a 1-year high of $80.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The firm has a market cap of $5.40 billion, a PE ratio of 30.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.37.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.39 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.35 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current 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 given a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 90.18%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on SWX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Southwest Gas from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Bank of America reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $73.00 target price on shares of Southwest Gas in a report on Friday, December 13th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Southwest Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.