Rhumbline Advisers Has $9.92 Million Stock Position in Avista Corporation $AVA

Key Points

• Rhumbline Advisers has reduced its stake in Avista Corporation by 2.9%, owning 237,027 shares worth approximately $9.92 million at the end of the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors, including Vanguard Group, Westwood Holdings Group, and Millennium Management, have increased their stakes in Avista during the same period, highlighting significant investor interest.
• Avista recently reported a disappointing earnings quarter, missing consensus estimates and posting a revenue of $400 million, compared to the expected $416 million.

Rhumbline Advisers reduced its position in Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) by 2.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 237,027 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 7,141 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers owned about 0.29% of Avista worth $9,924,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AVA. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Avista by 1.0% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,360,222 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $433,782,000 after buying an additional 99,365 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Avista by 8.1% during the 1st quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 1,382,168 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $57,871,000 after purchasing an additional 103,844 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Avista by 531.2% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,370,502 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $57,383,000 after purchasing an additional 1,153,389 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Avista by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,266,825 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $53,042,000 after purchasing an additional 13,545 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Demars Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Avista by 18.8% in the 1st quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC now owns 682,659 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $28,583,000 after purchasing an additional 108,072 shares during the last quarter. 85.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Avista

In related news, VP David J. Meyer sold 1,367 shares of Avista stock in a transaction on Friday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.72, for a total value of $50,196.24. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 8,394 shares in the company, valued at $308,227.68. This trade represents a 14.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.96% of the company's stock.

Avista Trading Up 0.2%

Avista stock opened at $36.25 on Thursday. 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 $2.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.33, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.41. Avista Corporation has a one year low of $34.80 and a one year high of $43.09. The company's fifty day moving average price is $37.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $38.73.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.28 by ($0.11). Avista had a return on equity of 6.86% and a net margin of 9.13%.The company had revenue of $400.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $416.06 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.29 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Avista Corporation will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avista Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 19th. Avista's dividend 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.

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