MML Investors Services LLC Grows Position in Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA)

MML Investors Services LLC raised its stake in Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA) by 13.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 57,320 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,971 shares during the quarter. MML Investors Services LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Avista worth $2,221,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AVA. Foundry Partners LLC purchased a new position in Avista in the 3rd quarter valued at about $10,076,000. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Avista in the second quarter valued at approximately $7,130,000. Peregrine Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Avista during the second quarter valued at approximately $6,506,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Avista during the second quarter worth approximately $5,638,000. Finally, Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC purchased a new stake in Avista in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $5,838,000. 85.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AVA. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Avista in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $40.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America initiated coverage on Avista in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $37.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $36.75.

Avista Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE AVA opened at $36.53 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.89 billion, a PE ratio of 14.55, a P/E/G ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.48. 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 firm has a fifty day moving average of $37.79 and a 200-day moving average of $37.33. Avista Co. has a 52-week low of $31.91 and a 52-week high of $39.99.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.13 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $383.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $389.29 million. Avista had a return on equity of 7.83% and a net margin of 10.24%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.19 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Avista Co. will post 2.3 EPS for the current year.

Avista Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th were given a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.20%. Avista’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 75.70%.

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.