Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Raises Position in Avista Corporation $AVA

Key Points

• Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Avista Corporation by 1.1% in the first quarter, owning approximately $53.04 million worth of shares after adding 13,545 shares.
• Avista reported a Q2 earnings per share (EPS) of $0.17, missing analysts' expectations of $0.28, along with revenue of $400 million compared to predicted $416.06 million.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.49 per share, representing a 5.3% yield, with a current payout ratio of 88.29%.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) by 1.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,266,825 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 13,545 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 1.58% of Avista worth $53,042,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Xponance Inc. boosted its position in shares of Avista by 5.5% during the 1st quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 5,934 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $248,000 after purchasing an additional 307 shares during the period. Moors & Cabot Inc. boosted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 313 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Avista by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 137,767 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $5,046,000 after purchasing an additional 359 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its position in shares of Avista by 7.9% during 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 boosted its position in shares of Avista by 1.5% during the 4th 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 during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.24% of the company's stock.

Avista Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:AVA traded down $0.3520 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $36.7980. 672,445 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 832,620. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.68. The firm has a market cap of $2.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.40. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $37.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.77. Avista Corporation has a 1 year low of $34.80 and a 1 year high of $43.09.

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

Avista Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th will be given a $0.49 dividend. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 19th. Avista's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 88.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Avista news, VP Scott J. Kinney sold 1,024 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.82, for a total value of $38,727.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 11,515 shares of the company's stock, valued at $435,497.30. This trade represents a 8.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.96% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.