Wealthfront Advisers LLC Buys New Position in Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA)

Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 214,983 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $7,875,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC owned 0.27% of Avista as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Algert Global LLC increased its holdings in Avista by 202.2% during the 3rd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 57,617 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,233,000 after purchasing an additional 38,550 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Avista by 9.0% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 420,527 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $16,295,000 after purchasing an additional 34,829 shares during the last quarter. A. D. Beadell Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Avista in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,340,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Avista by 1.5% in 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. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Avista in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,672,000. 85.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Avista Stock Down 1.2 %

AVA opened at $38.83 on Thursday. Avista Co. has a one year low of $33.00 and a one year high of $40.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.75. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $37.35 and its 200-day moving average is $37.66. The company has a market capitalization of $3.11 billion, a PE ratio of 15.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.46.

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

Avista Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be given a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.05%. This is a positive change from Avista’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. Avista’s payout ratio is presently 86.34%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Avista news, VP Scott J. Kinney sold 2,298 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 12,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $485,886.25. This represents a 15.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Avista from $40.00 to $39.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research 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.