Gamco Investors INC. ET AL Boosts Position in Avista Corporation $AVA

Gamco Investors INC. ET AL lifted its holdings in shares of Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) by 28.2% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 412,244 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 90,790 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL’s holdings in Avista were worth $15,587,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVA. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in Avista by 5.3% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 65,494 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,741,000 after acquiring an additional 3,296 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Avista by 11.1% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 69,831 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,924,000 after purchasing an additional 6,967 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in Avista in the 1st quarter worth $201,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in shares of Avista by 26.0% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 283,182 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $11,857,000 after purchasing an additional 58,504 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Avista in the 1st quarter worth about $134,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.24% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Bryan Alden Cox sold 1,768 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.18, for a total transaction of $71,038.24. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 8,401 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $337,552.18. This represents a 17.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Wayne O. Manuel sold 1,785 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.74, for a total value of $69,150.90. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 9,883 shares in the company, valued at $382,867.42. This trade represents a 15.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Avista from $41.00 to $39.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. KeyCorp restated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Avista in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Weiss Ratings raised Avista from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Avista from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $39.33.

Avista Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE:AVA opened at $39.70 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $3.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.68, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $40.57 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.09. Avista Corporation has a 52 week low of $35.50 and a 52 week high of $43.50.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, January 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter. Avista had a net margin of 9.83% and a return on equity of 7.29%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Avista Corporation will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avista Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be paid a $0.4925 dividend. This is an increase from Avista’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $1.97 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 25th. Avista’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.77%.

Avista Profile

Avista Corporation operates as an integrated energy company providing electric and natural gas delivery services to residential, commercial and industrial customers in the Pacific Northwest. Through its regulated utility operations, the company maintains and upgrades an extensive transmission and distribution network, delivering reliable energy to approximately 400,000 electric customers and 324,000 natural gas customers across Washington, Oregon and Idaho. In addition to its core utility business, Avista invests in owned generation assets, including hydroelectric, natural gas–fired, coal and wind facilities, to support system reliability and long-term supply planning.

Founded in 1889 as the Spokane and Inland Empire Water Power Company, the business adopted the Avista name in 1999 to reflect its growing energy portfolio and strategic focus on innovation.