29,747 Shares in Avista Corporation $AVA Bought by Versor Investments LP

Key Points

• Versor Investments LP disclosed a new stake in Avista, buying 29,747 shares valued at about $1.15 million. The filing comes amid heavy institutional ownership, with hedge funds and other investors holding most of the stock.
• Avista’s latest quarterly results beat earnings estimates, reporting $1.10 EPS versus the expected $1.04. However, revenue came in below forecasts at $555 million, and sales fell 8% year over year.
• The utility announced a quarterly dividend of $0.4925 per share, payable June 12, implying an annualized yield of about 4.8%. Meanwhile, analysts currently rate the stock a Hold on average, with a consensus price target of $40.

Versor Investments LP bought a new stake in shares of Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 29,747 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,146,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Avista during the 2nd quarter valued at $37,000. Aquatic Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Avista during the 3rd quarter valued at $43,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Avista by 60.0% during the 2nd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,949 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 731 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Avista by 47.1% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,117 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $118,000 after purchasing an additional 998 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio acquired a new position in Avista during the 1st quarter valued at $134,000. 85.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AVA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Avista from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 18th. KeyCorp reiterated a "sector weight" rating on shares of Avista in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Avista from $41.00 to $39.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $39.00 target price on shares of Avista in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Avista from $41.00 to $40.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $40.00.

Avista Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of AVA stock opened at $40.79 on Wednesday. Avista Corporation has a 52-week low of $35.50 and a 52-week high of $43.50. The stock has a market cap of $3.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.90. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $40.47 and a 200-day moving average of $40.22.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.06. Avista had a net margin of 10.75% and a return on equity of 7.65%. The company had revenue of $555.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $643.55 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.98 EPS. 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. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Avista Corporation will post 2.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avista Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th will be paid a $0.4925 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 19th. This represents a $1.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.8%. Avista's dividend payout ratio is currently 78.49%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Bryan Alden Cox sold 1,768 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.18, for a total value of $71,038.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 8,401 shares in the company, valued at approximately $337,552.18. This represents a 17.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Wayne O. Manuel sold 1,593 shares of the 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 sale, the senior vice president owned 10,521 shares of the company's stock, valued at $431,150.58. This trade represents a 13.15% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 3,916 shares of company stock valued at $158,408. Corporate insiders own 0.78% of the company's stock.

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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