Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) Sets New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE:SWX)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Friday . The company traded as high as $94.47 and last traded at $93.9960, with a volume of 42654 shares. The stock had previously closed at $92.95.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on SWX. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Southwest Gas in a report on Monday, May 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $105.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Southwest Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. UBS Group set a $100.00 price target on shares of Southwest Gas in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Southwest Gas from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Southwest Gas from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $100.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $97.29.

Southwest Gas Stock Up 0.6%

The firm has a market capitalization of $6.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.57, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 1.45. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $89.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $87.42.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.88 by $0.03. Southwest Gas had a net margin of 19.95% and a return on equity of 6.95%. The firm had revenue of $585.12 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $695.52 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.58 EPS. Southwest Gas’s revenue was down 21.6% on a year-over-year basis. Southwest Gas has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.170-4.320 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Southwest Gas Corporation will post 4.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a $0.645 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.39%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Southwest Gas by 223.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 440 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas during the fourth quarter worth about $56,000. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 301.0% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 834 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 626 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Gas during the third quarter valued at about $72,000. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 21.3% during the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 939 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. 92.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southwest Gas Company Profile

Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE: SWX) is a publicly traded natural gas utility that provides regulated gas distribution services to residential, commercial, industrial and electric generation customers. The company’s core activities include the transportation, distribution and sale of natural gas through an extensive network of pipelines, service lines and metering facilities. Southwest Gas also offers related services such as system maintenance, pipeline safety inspections, emergency response and line extensions to support customer growth and ensure reliable gas delivery.

Founded in 1931 in southern Nevada, Southwest Gas has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to become one of the nation’s larger natural gas utilities by customer count.