Insider Selling: Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) Major Shareholder Sells $156,660,000.00 in Stock

Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) major shareholder Carl C. Icahn sold 2,100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.60, for a total transaction of $156,660,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,532,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $561,932,258.40. The trade was a 21.80 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Large shareholders that own 10% or more of a company’s shares are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

Southwest Gas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SWX opened at $72.11 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.08, a P/E/G ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.37. 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 company has a 50 day simple moving average of $74.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $74.01. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $64.31 and a 1 year high of $80.29.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.18. Southwest Gas had a return on equity of 5.99% and a net margin of 3.44%. The company had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.35 billion. On average, equities research analysts predict that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Southwest Gas Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.44%. Southwest Gas’s payout ratio is currently 90.18%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SWX. Zimmer Partners LP increased its holdings in Southwest Gas by 884.4% in the 4th quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 910,615 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $64,390,000 after purchasing an additional 818,115 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Southwest Gas during the fourth quarter worth $51,011,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 111.8% in the fourth quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 900,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $63,639,000 after buying an additional 475,000 shares in the last quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 18.5% in the 3rd quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 1,765,148 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $130,197,000 after buying an additional 275,992 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Southwest Gas by 83.3% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 505,555 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,748,000 after acquiring an additional 229,739 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on SWX shares. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Southwest Gas in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “hold” rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Southwest Gas from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $73.00 price objective on shares of Southwest Gas in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised 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 issued a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $74.00.

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.