Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 94,554 Shares of Avista Corporation $AVA

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) by 16.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 491,669 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 94,554 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.60% of Avista worth $19,736,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Avista by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,933,633 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $421,382,000 after purchasing an additional 98,220 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Avista by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,305,266 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $204,465,000 after purchasing an additional 45,696 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Avista by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,985,944 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $76,550,000 after buying an additional 7,793 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in shares of Avista by 16.6% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,807,397 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $69,657,000 after buying an additional 257,834 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Avista by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,511,205 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $58,243,000 after buying an additional 4,506 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.24% of the company’s stock.

Avista Trading Down 0.4%

AVA opened at $41.53 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.55, a P/E/G ratio of 3.90 and a beta of 0.25. Avista Corporation has a 12 month low of $35.50 and a 12 month high of $43.50. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $41.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $40.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $570.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $643.55 million. Avista had a net margin of 10.75% and a return on equity of 7.65%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.98 EPS. Avista has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.520-2.720 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Avista Corporation will post 2.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avista Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th were given a dividend of $0.4925 per share. This represents a $1.97 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 19th. Avista’s dividend payout ratio is currently 78.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Avista

In related news, SVP Wayne O. Manuel sold 1,593 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.98, for a total transaction of $65,281.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 10,521 shares in the company, valued at approximately $431,150.58. This trade represents a 13.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.78% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AVA has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Zacks Research raised Avista from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Mizuho increased their price target on Avista from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Barclays increased their price target on Avista from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Avista from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, April 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $39.00 price objective on Avista in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $40.00.

Avista Profile

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.