Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA) Stake Boosted by Nisa Investment Advisors LLC

Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA - Free Report) by 16.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 96,959 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 13,431 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.12% of Avista worth $3,552,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AVA. Algert Global LLC raised its position in shares of Avista by 202.2% in the 3rd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 57,617 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,233,000 after purchasing an additional 38,550 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Avista by 9.0% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 420,527 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $16,295,000 after acquiring an additional 34,829 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Avista by 1.5% during the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. A. D. Beadell Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Avista in the 4th quarter worth about $1,340,000. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Avista in the 2nd quarter valued at about $5,638,000. 85.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Avista in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They set a "hold" rating and a $40.00 price objective on the stock.

Avista Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AVA traded up $0.18 during trading on Friday, hitting $36.00. 402,735 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 386,756. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.34, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.49. Avista Co. has a one year low of $31.91 and a one year high of $39.99. 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 business's fifty day moving average is $37.03 and its 200-day moving average is $37.70.

Avista (NYSE:AVA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.13 by $0.10. Avista had a net margin of 10.24% and a return on equity of 7.83%. The company had revenue of $383.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $389.29 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.19 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Avista Co. will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avista Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 26th were issued a $0.475 dividend. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 26th. 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.