BlackRock Inc. Takes Position in Avista Corporation $AVA

Key Points

• BlackRock acquired 14.8 million Avista shares valued at roughly $605.4 million, giving it a 17.67% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 85.24% of the utility company.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with one Buy rating and six Holds; Avista has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $39.25.
• Avista reported quarterly EPS of $0.43, beating estimates of $0.23, and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.4925, equivalent to a 5.2% annualized yield.

BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 14,799,513 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $605,448,000. BlackRock Inc. owned 17.67% of Avista at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Avista in the second quarter worth approximately $37,919,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Avista by 105.1% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,137,236 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $43,829,000 after buying an additional 582,742 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in Avista by 37,219.7% in the 4th 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 during the period. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd lifted its position in Avista by 1,723.9% in the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 442,427 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $16,728,000 after buying an additional 418,170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its stake 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 buying an additional 398,446 shares during the period. 85.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AVA. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Avista from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Barclays lowered their target price on Avista from $40.00 to $37.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Zacks Research raised Avista from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Avista from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. One equities research 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 company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $39.25.

Avista Price Performance

NYSE AVA opened at $37.62 on Monday. Avista Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $35.50 and a fifty-two week high of $43.50. The stock's 50-day moving average is $40.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $40.81. The firm has a market cap of $3.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 0.69.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.20. Avista had a return on equity of 7.85% and a net margin of 11.83%.The business had revenue of $413.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $426.93 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.17 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Avista Corporation will post 2.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avista Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 18th will be given a $0.4925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 18th. This represents a $1.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.2%. Avista's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 71.12%.

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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