Gabelli Funds LLC Increases Stake in Avista Corporation $AVA

Key Points

• Gabelli Funds LLC increased its Avista stake by 9.0% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 458,300 shares valued at about $17.7 million. Several other institutional investors also added positions, and hedge funds and institutions now own 85.24% of the stock.
• Wall Street sentiment is mostly cautious: Avista has a consensus rating of “Hold” with an average price target of $40.00. Among recent analyst moves, Wells Fargo set a $39 target, while Mizuho nudged its target up to $42 and kept a neutral view.
• Avista beat earnings expectations but missed on revenue in its latest quarterly report, posting $1.10 EPS versus the $1.04 estimate while revenue came in at $570 million, below forecasts. The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.4925 per share, implying an annualized yield of 4.8%.

Gabelli Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) by 9.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 458,300 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 37,800 shares during the period. Gabelli Funds LLC owned 0.56% of Avista worth $17,663,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. AlphaCore Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Avista during the 4th quarter worth about $382,000. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Avista during the 4th quarter worth about $92,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Avista by 37,219.7% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 541,136 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $20,855,000 after acquiring an additional 539,686 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in shares of Avista by 14.4% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,020 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $78,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares during the period. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its position in Avista by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 18,621 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $718,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. 85.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Avista from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 18th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $39.00 target price on shares of Avista in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. KeyCorp reissued a "sector weight" rating on shares of Avista in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Avista from $41.00 to $39.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Avista from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $40.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Avista news, SVP Bryan Alden Cox sold 1,768 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.18, for a total value of $71,038.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 8,401 shares in the company, valued at $337,552.18. This represents a 17.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Wayne O. Manuel sold 1,593 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.98, for a total value of $65,281.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 10,521 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $431,150.58. This represents a 13.15% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 3,916 shares of company stock valued at $158,408. 0.78% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Avista Stock Up 2.0%

AVA opened at $41.21 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $40.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $40.28. The company has a market cap of $3.41 billion, a PE ratio of 16.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 0.24. Avista Corporation has a 1 year low of $35.50 and a 1 year high of $43.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.90.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $570.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $643.55 million. Avista had a return on equity of 7.65% and a net margin of 10.75%.Avista's quarterly revenue was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.98 EPS. Avista has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.520-2.720 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Avista Corporation will post 2.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Avista Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th will be issued a $0.4925 dividend. This represents a $1.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 19th. Avista's dividend payout ratio is currently 78.49%.

Avista Company Profile

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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