Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. Lowers Stock Position in Avista Corporation $AVA

Key Points

• Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. has reduced its stake in Avista Corporation by 43.0%, currently owning approximately $5.94 million in shares after selling over 107,000 shares in the first quarter.
• Avista reported a miss on earnings with an EPS of $0.17 compared to the expected $0.28, and its revenue also fell short at $400 million against a consensus estimate of $416 million.
• Avista announced a quarterly dividend of $0.49 per share, yielding 5.3%, with a payout ratio of 88.29% based on the latest financials.

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. lessened its stake in shares of Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) by 43.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 141,825 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 107,093 shares during the period. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. owned 0.18% of Avista worth $5,938,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of Avista by 39.2% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 243,046 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $10,176,000 after purchasing an additional 68,394 shares during the last quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Avista by 6.1% in the 1st quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC now owns 285,127 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $11,938,000 after purchasing an additional 16,369 shares during the last quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Avista in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,126,000. Neuberger Berman Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Avista in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $269,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Avista in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.24% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Avista

In related news, VP Scott J. Kinney sold 1,024 shares of Avista stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.82, for a total value of $38,727.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 11,515 shares in the company, valued at $435,497.30. The trade was a 8.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.96% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Avista Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of AVA stock traded up $0.6490 during trading on Friday, reaching $37.2690. The company's stock had a trading volume of 675,572 shares, compared to its average volume of 765,995. 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 company has a market capitalization of $3.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.40. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $37.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $38.77. Avista Corporation has a 1-year low of $34.80 and a 1-year high of $43.09.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $400.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $416.06 million. Avista had a net margin of 9.13% and a return on equity of 6.86%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.29 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Avista Corporation will post 2.3 EPS for the current year.

Avista Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 19th will be paid a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 19th. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.3%. Avista's payout ratio is currently 88.29%.

Avista Company 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.