Avista (NYSE:AVA) SVP Sells $65,281.14 in Stock

Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) SVP Wayne Manuel sold 1,593 shares of Avista stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.98, for a total value of $65,281.14. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 10,521 shares in the company, valued at $431,150.58. The trade was a 13.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Avista Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of Avista stock opened at $40.80 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $40.44 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $40.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.56. The company has a market capitalization of $3.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.26, a PEG ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 0.24. Avista Corporation has a 1-year low of $35.50 and a 1-year high of $43.50.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $555.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $643.55 million. Avista had a return on equity of 7.65% and a net margin of 10.75%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.98 EPS. Avista has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.520-2.720 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Avista Corporation will post 2.59 EPS for the current year.

Avista Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.4925 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 19th. This represents a $1.97 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.8%. Avista’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 78.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVA has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company set a $39.00 target price on shares of Avista in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen raised Avista from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 18th. Zacks Research lowered Avista from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Avista from $41.00 to $39.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of Avista in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Avista currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $40.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Avista

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of Avista by 90.7% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 637 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 303 shares in the last quarter. Bayban bought a new position in shares of Avista in the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Avista in the second quarter valued at $37,000. Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Avista in the third quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Avista by 619.5% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,439 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 1,239 shares in the last quarter. 85.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Avista

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.