Avista (NYSE:AVA) Stock Price Passes Above 200 Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Avista shares moved above their 200-day moving average, trading as high as $41.50 before last changing hands near $40.95. The stock’s 200-day average was $40.46.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but cautious: the stock has an average Hold rating with a consensus target price of $39.75, and several firms recently adjusted targets and ratings modestly.
• Avista beat quarterly EPS expectations at $1.10 versus $1.04, but revenue came in below estimates and fell 8% year over year. The company also pays a quarterly dividend yielding about 4.8%.

Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report)'s stock price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $40.46 and traded as high as $41.50. Avista shares last traded at $40.9490, with a volume of 488,650 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AVA has been the topic of several analyst reports. Mizuho increased their target price on Avista from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $39.00 price target on shares of Avista in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Avista from $42.00 to $39.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 15th. Zacks Research raised Avista from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Avista from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, April 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $39.75.

Avista Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $3.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.84 and a beta of 0.24. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $41.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $40.46. 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 - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.06. Avista had a net margin of 10.75% and a return on equity of 7.65%. The business had revenue of $570.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $643.55 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.98 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Avista has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.520-2.720 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Avista Corporation will post 2.59 EPS for the current year.

Avista Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th were paid a dividend of $0.4925 per share. This represents a $1.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 19th. Avista's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 78.49%.

Insider Transactions at Avista

In related news, SVP Wayne O. Manuel sold 1,593 shares of Avista 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 transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 10,521 shares of the company's stock, valued at $431,150.58. The trade was a 13.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.78% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Avista

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in Avista by 359.4% during the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,282,508 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $48,492,000 after purchasing an additional 1,003,362 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in Avista by 105.1% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,137,236 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $43,829,000 after buying an additional 582,742 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in shares of Avista by 37,219.7% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 541,136 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $20,855,000 after buying 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 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 in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Avista by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,191,896 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $197,032,000 after acquiring an additional 398,446 shares during the last quarter. 85.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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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