Magellan Asset Management Ltd Buys Shares of 70,956 Avista Corporation $AVA

Magellan Asset Management Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 70,956 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,903,000. Magellan Asset Management Ltd owned approximately 0.08% of Avista at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in shares of Avista by 5.3% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 65,494 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,741,000 after buying an additional 3,296 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Avista by 11.1% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 69,831 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,924,000 after acquiring an additional 6,967 shares during the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association bought a new stake in Avista during the 1st quarter worth approximately $201,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in Avista by 26.0% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 283,182 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $11,857,000 after acquiring an additional 58,504 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio bought a new position in shares of Avista during the first quarter valued at $134,000. 85.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Avista Trading Up 0.1%

AVA opened at $37.62 on Monday. Avista Corporation has a twelve month low of $35.50 and a twelve month high of $43.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08. The company has a fifty day moving average of $40.42 and a 200-day moving average of $40.81. The stock has a market cap of $3.15 billion, a PE ratio of 13.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.25.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.20. Avista had a net margin of 11.83% and a return on equity of 7.85%. The business had revenue of $413.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $426.93 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.17 earnings per share. Avista's revenue for the quarter was up .5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Avista Corporation will post 2.58 EPS for the current year.

Avista Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.4925 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 18th. This represents a $1.97 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.2%. Avista's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 71.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AVA. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Avista from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Barclays lowered their target price on Avista from $40.00 to $37.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Avista from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research raised Avista from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $39.25.

About Avista

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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