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

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

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lifted its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 599.0% in the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 9,877 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $729,000 after buying an additional 8,464 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 234.1% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 53,403 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,939,000 after purchasing an additional 37,418 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 31.1% during the fourth quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 110,817 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,836,000 after purchasing an additional 26,300 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Southwest Gas during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,000,000. Finally, O Keefe Stevens Advisory Inc. increased its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 45.0% during the fourth quarter. O Keefe Stevens Advisory Inc. now owns 11,775 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $833,000 after purchasing an additional 3,654 shares during the period. 92.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on SWX. 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 research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $73.00 target price on shares of Southwest Gas in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Southwest Gas in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “hold” rating and a $73.00 target price on the stock. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded Southwest Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $74.00.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

Southwest Gas stock opened at $75.18 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $74.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $73.97. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $64.31 and a one year high of $80.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. 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 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $1.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.35 billion. Southwest Gas had a return on equity of 5.99% and a net margin of 3.44%. As a group, research analysts expect that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio is presently 90.18%.

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.