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Truist Financial Corp Cuts Position in Avista Corporation $AVA

Avista logo with Utilities background

Key Points

  • Truist Financial Corp reduced its stake in Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) by 19.0% in Q2, now owning 36,837 shares valued at approximately $1.4 million.
  • Avista recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.49 per share, representing an annual yield of 5.3% with a payout ratio of 88.29%.
  • According to Weiss Ratings, Avista maintains a "hold" rating with a consensus target price of $39.00, despite recent earnings falling short of analyst expectations.
  • Five stocks we like better than Avista.

Truist Financial Corp decreased its position in Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) by 19.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 36,837 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 8,653 shares during the quarter. Truist Financial Corp's holdings in Avista were worth $1,398,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVA. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Avista by 252.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 916 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 656 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Avista in the first quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new stake in Avista in the first quarter valued at approximately $102,000. Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in Avista during the 1st quarter worth approximately $134,000. Finally, Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. acquired a new stake in Avista during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $144,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.24% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Avista in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Avista has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $39.00.

Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on AVA

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Bryan Alden Cox acquired 3,671 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 16th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $35.55 per share, with a total value of $130,504.05. Following the completion of the acquisition, the senior vice president owned 9,989 shares in the company, valued at approximately $355,108.95. This represents a 58.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP David J. Meyer sold 1,367 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.72, for a total transaction of $50,196.24. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 8,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $308,227.68. This represents a 14.00% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.94% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Avista Trading Down 0.2%

NYSE AVA opened at $37.05 on Monday. 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 firm's fifty day moving average price is $36.92 and its 200 day moving average price is $38.29. The company has a market capitalization of $3.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.39. Avista Corporation has a 12 month low of $34.80 and a 12 month 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 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.11). Avista had a net margin of 9.13% and a return on equity of 6.86%. The company had revenue of $400.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $416.06 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.29 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Avista Corporation will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avista Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th were issued a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 19th. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.3%. Avista's payout ratio is presently 88.29%.

Avista Company Profile

(Free Report)

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.

Read More

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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Avista (NYSE:AVA)

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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