Avista Corporation $AVA Shares Purchased by Vanguard Group Inc.

Key Points

• Vanguard Group increased its stake in Avista by 0.9% to 10,933,633 shares, owning 13.44% of the company (worth ~$421.4M), and institutional investors now hold 85.24% of AVA.
• Avista announced a quarterly dividend of $0.4925 (annualized $1.97), implying a 4.9% yield; the record/ex-dividend date is May 19 and the dividend is payable June 12.
• The company beat quarterly EPS expectations ($1.10 vs. $1.04) but missed on revenue ($555M vs. $643.6M expected); management set FY2026 guidance of 2.520–2.720 EPS and analysts maintain a consensus "Hold" with an average price target of $40.00.

Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) by 0.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 10,933,633 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 98,220 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 13.44% of Avista worth $421,382,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AVA. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Avista by 359.4% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,282,508 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $48,492,000 after acquiring an additional 1,003,362 shares during the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd boosted its stake 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 worth $16,728,000 after acquiring an additional 418,170 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Avista by 8.3% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,191,896 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $197,032,000 after acquiring an additional 398,446 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. boosted its stake in shares of Avista by 216.5% in the third quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 477,238 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $18,044,000 after acquiring an additional 326,469 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invenomic Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Avista in the third quarter worth approximately $7,014,000. 85.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Avista news, SVP Bryan Alden Cox sold 1,768 shares of Avista stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.18, for a total value of $71,038.24. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 8,401 shares in the company, valued at $337,552.18. The trade was a 17.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.78% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Avista Stock Down 0.9%

NYSE AVA opened at $40.55 on Thursday. Avista Corporation has a 52 week low of $35.50 and a 52 week high of $43.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $40.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $40.17. The firm has a market cap of $3.35 billion, a PE ratio of 16.15, a P/E/G ratio of 3.82 and a beta of 0.24.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.10 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 business had revenue of $555.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $643.55 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.98 EPS. The company's quarterly 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 analysts anticipate that Avista Corporation will post 2.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Avista Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th will be given a $0.4925 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 19th. This represents a $1.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.9%. Avista's payout ratio is currently 78.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AVA has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Avista from $41.00 to $39.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Avista from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Avista from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Wells Fargo & Company set a $39.00 target price on Avista in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Avista from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, April 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $40.00.

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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