Foundry Partners LLC Sells 97,598 Shares of Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA)

Foundry Partners LLC trimmed its position in Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) by 30.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 225,503 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 97,598 shares during the quarter. Foundry Partners LLC owned approximately 0.28% of Avista worth $9,442,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Headlands Technologies LLC raised its holdings in Avista by 2,474.1% during the 4th quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 695 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 668 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Avista by 252.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 916 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 656 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Avista in the first quarter valued at approximately $222,000. Vision Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Avista in the 1st quarter valued at $224,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its stake 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 buying an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. 85.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Avista Stock Up 1.3%

AVA traded up $0.49 on Monday, hitting $37.73. 220,460 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 624,748. The stock's fifty day moving average is $37.99 and its 200-day moving average is $38.64. Avista Corporation has a 12 month low of $34.80 and a 12 month high of $43.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.93. The company has a market cap of $3.04 billion, a PE ratio of 16.12, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.40.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.05 by ($0.07). Avista had a net margin of 9.63% and a return on equity of 7.28%. The business had revenue of $603.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $636.30 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.91 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Avista Corporation will post 2.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avista Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th were issued a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.19%. Avista's payout ratio is currently 83.76%.

Insider Transactions at Avista

In related news, VP Scott J. Kinney sold 1,024 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.82, for a total transaction of $38,727.68. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 11,515 shares of the company's stock, valued at $435,497.30. This 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 can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.94% of the company's stock.

About Avista

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.