33,623 Shares in Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA) Purchased by Edgestream Partners L.P.

Edgestream Partners L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 33,623 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,232,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Avista by 1.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,828,230 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $70,857,000 after acquiring an additional 27,328 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Avista by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,253,280 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $45,908,000 after buying an additional 24,981 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in Avista by 16.6% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,184,838 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $43,401,000 after buying an additional 168,648 shares during the period. RWC Asset Management LLP increased its holdings in Avista by 70.4% in the 4th quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP now owns 538,517 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $19,726,000 after buying an additional 222,500 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Avista by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 439,680 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $16,105,000 after buying an additional 19,153 shares during the period. 85.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Avista Trading Down 0.1 %

AVA opened at $39.65 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $37.26 and its 200-day moving average is $37.65. Avista Co. has a 1-year low of $33.00 and a 1-year high of $40.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. The company has a market cap of $3.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.80, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.46.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.86 by ($0.02). Avista had a net margin of 10.24% and a return on equity of 7.83%. The company had revenue of $517.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $487.48 million. Equities research analysts predict that Avista Co. will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avista Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be paid a $0.49 dividend. This is an increase from Avista’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.94%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 26th. Avista’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 86.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Scott J. Kinney sold 2,298 shares of Avista stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.75, for a total transaction of $89,047.50. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 12,539 shares in the company, valued at $485,886.25. This trade represents a 15.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.96% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Avista from $40.00 to $39.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th.

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.