Demars Financial Group LLC Reduces Holdings in Avista Corporation $AVA

Key Points

• Demars Financial Group LLC reduced its holdings in Avista Corporation by 97.1% in the second quarter, now owning just 19,827 shares valued at $752,000.
• Avista's recent earnings report showed a miss on EPS, reporting $0.17 compared to expectations of $0.28, with revenues also falling short at $400 million.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.49, translating to an annual yield of 5.1%, with a payout ratio of 88.29%.

Demars Financial Group LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) by 97.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,827 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 662,832 shares during the period. Demars Financial Group LLC's holdings in Avista were worth $752,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new stake in shares of Avista during the 2nd quarter valued at $960,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new position in Avista during the second quarter valued at $628,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in Avista by 112.8% during the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 18,002 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $683,000 after purchasing an additional 9,544 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC increased its position in Avista by 2.6% in the second quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 29,948 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,137,000 after buying an additional 755 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SPC Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Avista by 4.4% in the second quarter. SPC Financial Inc. now owns 11,900 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $452,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. 85.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Avista in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $39.00.

Avista Trading Up 0.1%

Avista stock opened at $38.42 on Monday. Avista Corporation has a 1 year low of $34.80 and a 1 year high of $43.09. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $36.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.15. 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 stock has a market cap of $3.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.31, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.39.

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

Avista Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 19th were given a $0.49 dividend. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 19th. Avista's payout ratio is currently 88.29%.

Insider Transactions at Avista

In related news, VP David J. Meyer sold 1,367 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.72, for a total transaction of $50,196.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 8,394 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $308,227.68. This represents a 14.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Bryan Alden Cox acquired 3,671 shares of Avista stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 16th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $35.55 per share, for a total transaction of $130,504.05. Following the purchase, the senior vice president owned 9,989 shares in the company, valued at approximately $355,108.95. The trade was a 58.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by 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.

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