Squarepoint Ops LLC Sells 7,567 Shares of Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA)

Squarepoint Ops LLC lowered its position in shares of Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) by 49.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,877 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 7,567 shares during the quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC's holdings in Avista were worth $289,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Avista by 290.6% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 137,408 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $5,325,000 after purchasing an additional 102,231 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its position in Avista by 97.7% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,148 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $152,000 after acquiring an additional 2,050 shares in the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in Avista by 183.8% during the fourth quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,856 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 1,202 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its holdings in Avista by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 38,300 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,403,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in Avista by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 23,446 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $859,000 after buying an additional 1,928 shares during the last quarter. 85.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Avista Stock Up 1.2%

NYSE:AVA traded up $0.47 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $37.78. 462,805 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 606,417. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. The company has a market cap of $3.04 billion, a PE ratio of 15.05, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.41. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $39.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.50. Avista Co. has a one year low of $33.45 and a one year high of $43.09.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.05 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $603.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $636.30 million. Avista had a net margin of 10.24% and a return on equity of 7.83%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.91 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Avista Co. will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Avista Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. Avista's payout ratio is 83.76%.

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.