Avista (NYSE:AVA) Research Coverage Started at Barclays

Barclays began coverage on shares of Avista (NYSE:AVA) in a research note released on Monday morning, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage issued an equal weight rating and a $40.00 target price on the utilities provider’s stock.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on AVA. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Avista from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. KeyCorp reissued a “sector weight” rating on shares of Avista in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Weiss Ratings raised Avista from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on Avista from $41.00 to $39.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Avista has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $39.50.

Avista Stock Performance

NYSE:AVA opened at $38.93 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.36, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.28. Avista has a 1-year low of $35.50 and a 1-year high of $43.50. The business has a 50 day moving average of $40.61 and a 200 day moving average of $39.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.56.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, January 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter. Avista had a return on equity of 7.29% and a net margin of 9.83%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Avista will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avista Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be issued a $0.4925 dividend. This is a positive change from Avista’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $1.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 25th. Avista’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.77%.

Insider Activity

In other Avista news, SVP Bryan Alden Cox sold 1,768 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.18, for a total transaction of $71,038.24. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 8,401 shares in the company, valued at $337,552.18. The trade was a 17.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Wayne O. Manuel sold 1,785 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.74, for a total transaction of $69,150.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 9,883 shares in the company, valued at $382,867.42. This trade represents a 15.30% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVA. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Avista by 359.4% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,282,508 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $48,492,000 after purchasing an additional 1,003,362 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Avista during the second quarter valued at about $29,674,000. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. increased its position in Avista by 52.7% in the second quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 2,110,711 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $80,101,000 after buying an additional 728,543 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Avista by 105.1% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,137,236 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $43,829,000 after buying an additional 582,742 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in shares of Avista by 37,219.7% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 541,136 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $20,855,000 after buying an additional 539,686 shares in the last quarter. 85.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Avista

Avista Corporation operates as an integrated energy company providing electric and natural gas delivery services to residential, commercial and industrial customers in the Pacific Northwest. Through its regulated utility operations, the company maintains and upgrades an extensive transmission and distribution network, delivering reliable energy to approximately 400,000 electric customers and 324,000 natural gas customers across Washington, Oregon and Idaho. In addition to its core utility business, Avista invests in owned generation assets, including hydroelectric, natural gas–fired, coal and wind facilities, to support system reliability and long-term supply planning.

Founded in 1889 as the Spokane and Inland Empire Water Power Company, the business adopted the Avista name in 1999 to reflect its growing energy portfolio and strategic focus on innovation.