Jane Street Group LLC Buys 496,318 Shares of Avista Corporation $AVA

Key Points

• Jane Street Group LLC significantly increased its stake in Avista Corporation by 8,222.6% in Q1 2023, acquiring 496,318 shares to hold a total of 502,354 shares valued at approximately $21 million.
• Avista Corporation reported earnings of $0.17 per share for the last quarter, which was below the consensus estimate of $0.28 per share, alongside revenue of $400 million.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.49 per share with a yield of 5.4%, indicating a payout ratio of 88.29%.

Jane Street Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) by 8,222.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 502,354 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 496,318 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC owned approximately 0.62% of Avista worth $21,034,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in Avista by 48.5% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 35,188 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,473,000 after acquiring an additional 11,489 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in Avista by 983.2% during the first quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 98,649 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $4,088,000 after acquiring an additional 89,542 shares in the last quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Avista during the first quarter worth about $331,000. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Avista by 39.2% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 243,046 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $10,176,000 after acquiring an additional 68,394 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in Avista during the first quarter worth about $790,000. 85.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Avista

In other news, SVP Bryan Alden Cox purchased 3,671 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 16th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $35.55 per share, for a total transaction of $130,504.05. Following the completion of the acquisition, the senior vice president directly owned 9,989 shares in the company, valued at approximately $355,108.95. This trade represents a 58.10% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP David J. Meyer sold 1,367 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.72, for a total value of $50,196.24. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 8,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $308,227.68. This trade represents a 14.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.96% of the company's stock.

Avista Trading Up 1.1%

AVA stock traded up $0.41 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $36.45. 744,290 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 550,591. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $37.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 1.00. The company has a market cap of $2.96 billion, a PE ratio of 16.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.41. Avista Corporation has a one year low of $34.80 and a one year high of $43.09.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.28 by ($0.11). The business 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 firm posted $0.29 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Avista Corporation will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avista Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th were issued a $0.49 dividend. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.4%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 19th. Avista's payout ratio is 88.29%.

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.