Foundry Partners LLC Has $11.84 Million Position in Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA)

Foundry Partners LLC raised its stake in Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) by 24.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 323,101 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 63,086 shares during the quarter. Foundry Partners LLC owned approximately 0.41% of Avista worth $11,835,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new position in Avista during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,134,000. Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in Avista by 2,474.1% in the 4th quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 695 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 668 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Avista by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 15,551 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $570,000 after acquiring an additional 732 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its stake in shares of Avista by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 402,523 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $14,744,000 after buying an additional 9,825 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Horizon Investment Services LLC grew its holdings in Avista by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Investment Services LLC now owns 7,748 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $284,000 after acquiring an additional 762 shares in the last quarter. 85.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Avista Stock Performance

Shares of AVA traded down $0.74 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $38.81. 177,695 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 558,660. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.75. Avista Co. has a 12 month low of $33.00 and a 12 month high of $43.09. The business's 50-day moving average price is $38.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $37.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.38.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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). Avista had a net margin of 10.24% and a return on equity of 7.83%. The firm had revenue of $517.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $487.48 million. Equities analysts predict that Avista Co. will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Avista Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were given a $0.49 dividend. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.05%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. This is an increase from Avista's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Avista's dividend payout ratio is 86.34%.

Insider Activity

In other Avista news, VP Scott J. Kinney sold 2,298 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.75, for a total value of $89,047.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 12,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $485,886.25. This represents a 15.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.