Algert Global LLC Has $2.37 Million Stock Position in Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA)

Algert Global LLC lifted its position in Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) by 12.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 64,715 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 7,098 shares during the quarter. Algert Global LLC owned 0.08% of Avista worth $2,371,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Avista by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,967,172 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $108,687,000 after acquiring an additional 53,222 shares during the period. ATLAS Infrastructure Partners UK Ltd. bought a new position in Avista during the 4th quarter worth $7,960,000. Comerica Bank increased its position in Avista by 67.6% in the fourth quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 53,777 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,970,000 after buying an additional 21,692 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Avista by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,025,055 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $37,548,000 after buying an additional 79,576 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Avista during the fourth quarter valued at $2,066,000. 85.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Avista Stock Performance

AVA traded down $0.46 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $40.04. The company's stock had a trading volume of 823,997 shares, compared to its average volume of 585,487. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. Avista Co. has a fifty-two week low of $33.45 and a fifty-two week high of $43.09. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $40.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $38.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.23 billion, a PE ratio of 15.95, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.42.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.05 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $603.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $636.30 million. Avista had a return on equity of 7.83% and a net margin of 10.24%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.91 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Avista Co. will post 2.3 EPS for the current year.

Avista Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be given a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.90%. Avista's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 83.76%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Avista from $40.00 to $39.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Scott J. Kinney sold 2,298 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.75, for a total transaction of $89,047.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 12,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $485,886.25. This trade represents a 15.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Avista Profile

Avista Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an electric and natural gas utility company. It operates in two segments, Avista Utilities and AEL&P. The Avista Utilities segment provides electric distribution and transmission, and natural gas distribution services in parts of eastern Washington and northern Idaho; and natural gas distribution services in parts of northeastern and southwestern Oregon, as well as generates electricity in Washington, Idaho, Oregon, and Montana.