Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. Lowers Stake in Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA)

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. decreased its stake in shares of Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) by 17.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 248,918 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 51,505 shares during the quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. owned about 0.31% of Avista worth $9,118,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Avista by 117.8% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 858 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 464 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in shares of Avista by 296.7% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 956 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 715 shares in the last quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Avista by 45.3% in the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,462 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 456 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Avista by 43.0% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,723 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 518 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eastern Bank lifted its stake in shares of Avista by 309.3% in the 4th quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 1,842 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 1,392 shares during the last quarter. 85.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Avista Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE AVA traded up $0.02 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $39.73. The company's stock had a trading volume of 832,983 shares, compared to its average volume of 495,110. Avista Co. has a 12-month low of $33.00 and a 12-month 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 firm has a market cap of $3.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.46. The business's 50 day moving average is $37.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.71.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.86 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $517.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $487.48 million. Avista had a net margin of 10.24% and a return on equity of 7.83%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Avista Co. will post 2.3 EPS for the current year.

Avista Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were issued a dividend of $0.49 per share. This is an increase from Avista's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.93%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. Avista's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 86.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Scott J. Kinney sold 2,298 shares of Avista stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.75, for a total value of $89,047.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 12,539 shares in the company, valued at $485,886.25. The trade was a 15.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.96% of the company's stock.

Avista 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.