Moody Aldrich Partners LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Southwest Gas Corporation $SWX

by · The Markets Daily

Moody Aldrich Partners LLC lowered its stake in shares of Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE:SWX – Free Report) by 16.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 78,395 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 15,533 shares during the quarter. Southwest Gas accounts for 1.2% of Moody Aldrich Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC owned 0.11% of Southwest Gas worth $6,141,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas in the second quarter valued at about $422,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Southwest Gas by 1,015.2% during the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 5,152 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $383,000 after purchasing an additional 4,690 shares during the last quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. bought a new stake in Southwest Gas in the 2nd quarter worth about $779,000. Prudential Financial Inc. increased its stake in Southwest Gas by 6.2% in the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 175,095 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $13,025,000 after buying an additional 10,150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 763,318 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $56,783,000 after buying an additional 14,875 shares in the last quarter. 92.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SWX opened at $80.05 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $80.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $78.65. Southwest Gas Corporation has a 1-year low of $64.69 and a 1-year high of $83.23. The firm has a market cap of $5.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.63.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.09 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $316.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.08 billion. Southwest Gas had a net margin of 11.59% and a return on equity of 6.78%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.09 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Southwest Gas Corporation 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, March 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio is 38.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Mizuho initiated coverage on Southwest Gas in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $91.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Southwest Gas from $82.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. Zacks Research upgraded Southwest Gas from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southwest Gas in a research note on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $84.50.

Check Out Our Latest Report on Southwest Gas

About Southwest Gas

(Free Report)

Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE: SWX) is a publicly traded natural gas utility that provides regulated gas distribution services to residential, commercial, industrial and electric generation customers. The company’s core activities include the transportation, distribution and sale of natural gas through an extensive network of pipelines, service lines and metering facilities. Southwest Gas also offers related services such as system maintenance, pipeline safety inspections, emergency response and line extensions to support customer growth and ensure reliable gas delivery.

Founded in 1931 in southern Nevada, Southwest Gas has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to become one of the nation’s larger natural gas utilities by customer count.

See Also

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