Avista (NYSE:AVA) Now Covered by Barclays

Key Points

• Barclays initiated coverage on Avista (NYSE:AVA) with an "equal weight" rating and a $40.00 price target, implying roughly a 0.76% upside from the prior close.
• Analysts' consensus is a "Hold" (one Buy, four Holds) with an average target of $39.50; AVA trades near $39.70, has a market cap of $3.27B and a P/E of 16.68.
• Insiders have recently sold shares (senior VPs reduced positions); insiders own 0.94% while institutional investors hold about 85.24%, led by Vanguard and State Street.

Stock analysts at Barclays began coverage on shares of Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm set an "equal weight" rating and a $40.00 price target on the utilities provider's stock. Barclays's price objective suggests a potential upside of 0.76% from the company's previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on AVA. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Avista from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. KeyCorp reaffirmed a "sector weight" rating on shares of Avista in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Avista from $41.00 to $39.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Avista from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Avista has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $39.50.

Avista Trading Down 0.6%

AVA stock opened at $39.70 on Monday. The business's 50-day moving average is $40.57 and its 200 day moving average is $39.11. Avista has a 12-month low of $35.50 and a 12-month high of $43.50. The stock has a market cap of $3.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.68, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 anticipate that Avista will post 2.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Avista

In other news, SVP Wayne O. Manuel sold 1,785 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 9,883 shares in the company, valued at approximately $382,867.42. This represents a 15.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Bryan Alden Cox sold 1,768 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were 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 owned 8,401 shares in the company, valued at approximately $337,552.18. This trade represents a 17.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.94% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avista

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Avista by 0.9% in the 4th 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 during 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 buying an additional 45,696 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Avista by 52.7% during 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 during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Avista by 0.4% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised 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. 85.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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