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

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SWX has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Southwest Gas from $99.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Southwest Gas from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. 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. 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 price objective on the stock. Finally, UBS Group set a $100.00 target price on Southwest Gas in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $97.29.

Southwest Gas Stock Up 0.6%

The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The company has a market capitalization of $6.77 billion, a PE ratio of 13.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.58. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $89.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $87.42.

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

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southwest Gas

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Southwest Gas by 223.5% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 440 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares during the period. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Southwest Gas in the 4th quarter valued at about $56,000. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 301.0% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 834 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 626 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Southwest Gas by 21.3% in the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 939 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas in the third quarter worth about $72,000. 92.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Southwest Gas

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.