Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Grows Stake in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX)

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) by 94.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 75,923 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 36,900 shares during the quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.11% of Southwest Gas worth $4,810,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of SWX. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 11.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,646,936 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $520,388,000 after buying an additional 690,696 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 519.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 782,898 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $47,295,000 after purchasing an additional 656,473 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,176,000. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 146.8% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 882,058 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $54,582,000 after purchasing an additional 524,625 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BlackRock Inc. raised its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 10,117,342 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $631,828,000 after purchasing an additional 436,206 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.77% of the company’s stock.

Southwest Gas Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE SWX opened at $73.48 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $5.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.12. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $53.79 and a 1 year high of $76.75. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $69.98 and its 200 day moving average price is $63.75.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 28th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.16. Southwest Gas had a net margin of 2.78% and a return on equity of 7.28%. The business had revenue of $1.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.27 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 116.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SWX has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup raised their price target on Southwest Gas from $64.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. StockNews.com raised shares of Southwest Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 27th.

Southwest Gas 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.