Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) Price Target Raised to $88.00

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) had its price objective raised by Jefferies Financial Group from $82.00 to $88.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America upgraded shares of Southwest Gas from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $76.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Friday, August 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Southwest Gas from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Southwest Gas from $79.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.25.

Southwest Gas Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of Southwest Gas stock opened at $78.56 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $77.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $74.46. Southwest Gas has a 12-month low of $64.69 and a 12-month high of $80.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market cap of $5.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.31, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.55.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.17 billion. Southwest Gas had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 6.98%. Southwest Gas’s quarterly revenue was down 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.25 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Southwest Gas will post 3.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southwest Gas

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Private Trust Co. NA purchased a new position in Southwest Gas during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in Southwest Gas by 1,055.0% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 462 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 422 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 223.5% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 440 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. Simplex Trading LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southwest Gas in the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 144.0% in the 1st quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 510 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 301 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.77% of the company’s stock.

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.