Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) Receives Average Recommendation of "Hold" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Avista (NYSE:AVA) received an average broker rating of “Hold” from seven analysts, with a consensus 12-month price target of $40.00.
• The company reported better-than-expected earnings of $1.10 per share for the latest quarter, but revenue of $570 million fell short of estimates and declined 8.0% year over year.
• Avista announced a quarterly dividend of $0.4925 per share, implying an annualized yield of about 4.9%, while insiders recently sold shares and institutional ownership remains high at 85.24%.

Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) has been given an average recommendation of "Hold" by the seven research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $40.00.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on AVA shares. Barclays reduced their price objective on Avista from $41.00 to $40.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $39.00 price objective on Avista in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Mizuho raised their price objective on Avista from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Zacks Research lowered Avista from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Avista from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 18th.

Avista Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of NYSE:AVA opened at $40.38 on Friday. Avista has a 52-week low of $35.50 and a 52-week high of $43.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.09, a P/E/G ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 0.24. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $40.51 and a 200-day moving average price of $40.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.90.

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

Avista Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 19th will be given a dividend of $0.4925 per share. This represents a $1.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 19th. Avista's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 78.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Bryan Alden Cox sold 1,768 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 8,401 shares of the company's stock, valued at $337,552.18. This trade represents a 17.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Wayne O. Manuel sold 1,593 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.98, for a total value of $65,281.14. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 10,521 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $431,150.58. This trade represents a 13.15% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 3,916 shares of company stock valued at $158,408. 0.78% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Avista

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AVA. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings 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. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings 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. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in shares of Avista by 37,219.7% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 541,136 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $20,855,000 after purchasing an additional 539,686 shares in the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Avista by 1,723.9% in the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 442,427 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $16,728,000 after purchasing an additional 418,170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Avista by 8.3% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,191,896 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $197,032,000 after purchasing an additional 398,446 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.24% of the company's stock.

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.

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