Avista (NYSE:AVA) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.13 EPS

Avista (NYSE:AVA) released its earnings results on Wednesday. The utilities provider reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by ($0.13), Zacks reports. Avista had a net margin of 9.62% and a return on equity of 7.18%. The company had revenue of ($87.00) million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $541.10 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.84 EPS. Avista updated its FY 2026 guidance to 2.520-2.720 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Avista’s conference call:

• Avista is emphasizing results from its core utility business and reported 2025 non?GAAP utility EPS of $2.55 (vs. $2.38 in 2024) while consolidated EPS was $2.38, signaling management’s intent to reduce volatility from non?regulated earnings.
• From the 2025 RFP Avista selected a 14 MW turbine upgrade, a 100 MW build?transfer battery, a 200 MW wind PPA and ~40 MW of demand response, which the company says will add flexible, resilient capacity without increasing emissions.
• Avista received a significant deposit from a data?center developer for an initial 125 MW load (potentially ramping to 500 MW by 2030) and still has roughly 1,700 MW in its large?load queue, a pipeline that could materially aid affordability and growth.
• A December Washington Commission order required adjustments to Colstrip?related investment recovery, which reduced 2025 EPS by about $0.07 and kept utility earnings from exceeding the guidance midpoint.
• Management issued 2026 non?GAAP utility guidance of $2.52–$2.72, plans $585M capex in 2026 and $3.4B from 2026–2030 (5% base CAGR) with potential incremental $350M for a large customer; it expects ~$230M long?term debt and up to $90M equity issuance in 2026, and raised the dividend to $1.97 targeting a 60%–70% payout range.

Avista Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of NYSE AVA traded down $0.80 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $39.81. 1,415,290 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 667,098. Avista has a 12-month low of $35.50 and a 12-month high of $43.50. The firm has a market cap of $3.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.28. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $40.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.91.

Avista Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.4925 per share. This represents a $1.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 25th. This is a positive change from Avista’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Avista’s payout ratio is presently 83.40%.

Avista News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Avista this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Full?year operating performance improved: GAAP net income rose to $193M and non?GAAP utility earnings increased to $207M, driven by rate case outcomes, customer/load growth and cost discipline. Avista 2025 Results & 2026 Guidance (GlobeNewswire)
• Positive Sentiment: Management emphasizes utility strength and constructive regulatory outcomes that support steady utility earnings growth over the long term. Quiver AI summary
• Neutral Sentiment: Avista initiated 2026 non?GAAP utility earnings guidance of $2.52–$2.72 per share (company guidance provides a planning baseline for investors). Press release — guidance
• Neutral Sentiment: Capital plan and liquidity: Avista expects elevated utility capex (base $585M in 2026, rising later years) and plans ~$230M of long?term debt and up to $90M of equity issuance in 2026 — supports growth but raises funding/execute risk. Capex & financing details
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 miss: Avista reported Q4 EPS of $0.88 vs. consensus ~$1.01 and revenue shortfalls vs. estimates — an immediate catalyst for the price decline. Earnings snapshot (MarketBeat)
• Negative Sentiment: Guidance & customer headwind: The 2026 guidance midpoint is below sell?side consensus (company guidance 2.52–2.72 vs. consensus ~2.76) after a large industrial customer said it will resume procuring power independently earlier than expected (a ~$0.12 EPS headwind). Guidance detail (GlobeNewswire)
• Negative Sentiment: Non?regulated and regulatory drag: Losses in non?regulated businesses (notably clean?tech investments) widened and a late?Dec Washington order tied to Colstrip led to refunds/adjustments — both items pressure GAAP volatility. Quiver — non?regulated losses & Colstrip note
• Negative Sentiment: Insider sale: SVP Bryan Alden Cox sold 1,768 shares (reducing his stake ~17%), a small but visible insider sale disclosed in an SEC filing. SEC filing — insider sale

Insider Buying and Selling at Avista

In other news, SVP Bryan Alden Cox sold 1,768 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.18, for a total transaction of $71,038.24. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 8,401 shares in the company, valued at approximately $337,552.18. The trade was a 17.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Wayne O. Manuel sold 1,785 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the senior vice president directly owned 9,883 shares in the company, valued at $382,867.42. This represents a 15.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 3,680 shares of company stock valued at $145,380 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avista

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AVA. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Avista by 105.1% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,137,236 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $43,829,000 after purchasing an additional 582,742 shares in the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its stake in Avista by 1,723.9% during the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 442,427 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $16,728,000 after buying an additional 418,170 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in Avista by 8.3% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,191,896 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $197,032,000 after buying an additional 398,446 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Avista in the fourth quarter worth $13,533,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in Avista by 216.5% in the third quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 477,238 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $18,044,000 after acquiring an additional 326,469 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AVA. KeyCorp reissued a “sector weight” rating on shares of Avista in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Avista from $41.00 to $39.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Avista from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Mizuho set a $42.00 price objective on shares of Avista in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Avista from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Avista has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $39.33.

Avista Company 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.