Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Invests $3.31 Million in Southwest Gas Corporation $SWX

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new stake in Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE:SWX) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 38,059 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,307,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund owned approximately 0.05% of Southwest Gas as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Comerica Bank boosted its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 19.2% in the fourth quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 84,650 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $6,774,000 after acquiring an additional 13,623 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,086,000. Horizon Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Southwest Gas during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,361,000. Sierra Summit Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Southwest Gas in the first quarter worth approximately $986,000. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd increased its position in shares of Southwest Gas by 177.3% in the fourth quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 11,103 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $888,000 after acquiring an additional 7,099 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Southwest Gas in a research note on Monday, May 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $105.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group set a $100.00 price target on Southwest Gas in a report on Thursday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Southwest Gas from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $100.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen raised Southwest Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Southwest Gas from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Two equities research 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $97.29.

Southwest Gas Stock Down 1.6%

SWX opened at $90.34 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $6.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.09, 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 firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $89.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $88.25. Southwest Gas Corporation has a twelve month low of $75.75 and a twelve month high of $94.46.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.88 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $585.12 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $695.52 million. Southwest Gas had a net margin of 19.95% and a return on equity of 6.95%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 21.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.58 EPS. Southwest Gas has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.170-4.320 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Southwest Gas Corporation will post 4.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a $0.645 dividend. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. Southwest Gas’s payout ratio is currently 37.39%.

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.