Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE:SWX) Receives $77.25 Average PT from Brokerages

Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE:SWX) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the five brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, one has issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $77.25.

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of Southwest Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Southwest Gas from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $74.00 in a report on Friday, May 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Southwest Gas from $79.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Southwest Gas from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $74.00 to $82.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Southwest Gas from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 27th.

Southwest Gas Trading Down 2.2%

Shares of SWX opened at $77.69 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.99, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $76.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $74.25. Southwest Gas has a twelve month low of $64.69 and a twelve month high of $80.54.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.11. The business 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%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.25 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Southwest Gas will post 3.03 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Private Trust Co. NA bought a new position in Southwest Gas in the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake 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 worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 1,055.0% in the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 462 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 422 shares in the last quarter. Simplex Trading LLC bought a new position in shares of Southwest Gas in the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC increased its stake 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 worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 301 shares in the last quarter. 92.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.