Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Has $57.87 Million Position in Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA)

Key Points

• Westwood Holdings Group Inc. increased its stake in Avista Corporation by 8.1%, holding approximately 1.72% of the company valued at around $57.87 million following an addition of 103,844 shares in the first quarter.
• A number of hedge funds have also significantly increased their positions in Avista, with one firm expanding its holdings by 2,474.1% in the last quarter.
• Avista Corporation reported a loss in earnings per share (EPS) of $0.98 for the last quarter, falling short of analysts' estimates of $1.05, highlighting a slight decline in revenues compared to expectations.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. boosted its position in Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) by 8.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,382,168 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 103,844 shares during the quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned approximately 1.72% of Avista worth $57,871,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in AVA. Xponance Inc. lifted its holdings in Avista by 5.5% during the 1st quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 5,934 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $248,000 after buying an additional 307 shares in the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its position in Avista by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 10,131 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $424,000 after buying an additional 313 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its position in Avista by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 137,767 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $5,046,000 after acquiring an additional 359 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont raised its holdings in Avista by 7.9% in the 1st quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 5,494 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $230,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in shares of Avista by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 28,722 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,052,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. 85.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Avista

In related news, VP Scott J. Kinney sold 1,024 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.82, for a total transaction of $38,727.68. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 11,515 shares in the company, valued at approximately $435,497.30. This trade represents a 8.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Avista Trading Up 1.8%

Avista stock traded up $0.65 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $37.32. The company's stock had a trading volume of 934,551 shares, compared to its average volume of 725,445. Avista Corporation has a 1 year low of $34.80 and a 1 year high of $43.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The stock's fifty day moving average is $37.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.01 billion, a PE ratio of 16.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.40.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.11). Avista had a return on equity of 6.86% and a net margin of 9.13%. The firm had revenue of $400.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $416.06 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.29 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Avista Corporation will post 2.3 EPS for the current year.

Avista Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 19th. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.3%. Avista's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 83.76%.

Avista Profile

Avista Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an electric and natural gas utility company. It operates in two segments, Avista Utilities and AEL&P. The Avista Utilities segment provides electric distribution and transmission, and natural gas distribution services in parts of eastern Washington and northern Idaho; and natural gas distribution services in parts of northeastern and southwestern Oregon, as well as generates electricity in Washington, Idaho, Oregon, and Montana.