Weiss Ratings Reiterates "Hold (C)" Rating for Avista (NYSE:AVA)

Key Points

• Weiss Ratings has reaffirmed a "Hold (C)" rating for Avista (NYSE: AVA), which is also supported by Jefferies Financial Group, which raised its price target to $41.00.
• Avista recently reported earnings of $0.17 per share, missing the consensus estimate of $0.28, with total revenue of $400 million for the quarter.
• Insider transactions include SVP Bryan Alden Cox purchasing 3,671 shares, while VP David J. Meyer sold 1,367 shares, indicating mixed insider sentiment towards the stock.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold (c)" rating reaffirmed by analysts at Weiss Ratings in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Avista from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Avista has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $41.00.

Avista Price Performance

NYSE:AVA traded up $0.34 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $39.14. The company had a trading volume of 390,901 shares, compared to its average volume of 698,178. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.17 billion, a PE ratio of 17.63, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.39. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $37.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $38.14. Avista has a one year low of $34.80 and a one year high of $43.09.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) last issued 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 net margin of 9.13% and a return on equity of 6.86%. The firm had revenue of $400.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $416.06 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.29 EPS. Analysts forecast that Avista will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Bryan Alden Cox purchased 3,671 shares of Avista stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 16th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $35.55 per share, for a total transaction of $130,504.05. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 9,989 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $355,108.95. This represents a 58.10% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP David J. Meyer sold 1,367 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.72, for a total value of $50,196.24. Following the completion of the sale, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.96% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Avista

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AVA. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new stake in shares of Avista during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Avista during the second quarter valued at $34,000. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its stake in Avista by 54.8% during the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 884 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 313 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Avista in the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted 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 last quarter. 85.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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