Avista (NYSE:AVA) SVP Bryan Alden Cox Sells 1,768 Shares

Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) SVP Bryan Alden Cox sold 1,768 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.18, for a total transaction of $71,038.24. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 8,401 shares in the company, valued at approximately $337,552.18. The trade was a 17.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Avista Price Performance

Shares of Avista stock traded down $0.80 on Thursday, hitting $39.81. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,415,290 shares, compared to its average volume of 667,098. The company has a market capitalization of $3.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.28. Avista Corporation has a 1 year low of $35.50 and a 1 year high of $43.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.91. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $40.33 and a 200-day moving average price of $38.96.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by ($0.13). Avista had a return on equity of 7.18% and a net margin of 9.62%.The business had revenue of ($87.00) million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $541.10 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.84 EPS. Avista has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.520-2.720 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Avista Corporation will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avista Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 13th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be paid a $0.4925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 25th. This represents a $1.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.9%. This is an increase from Avista’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Avista’s dividend payout ratio is 83.40%.

Key Stories Impacting Avista

Here are the key news stories impacting Avista this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Full‑year operating performance improved: GAAP net income rose to $193M and non‑GAAP utility earnings increased to $207M, driven by rate case outcomes, customer/load growth and cost discipline. Avista 2025 Results & 2026 Guidance (GlobeNewswire)
• Positive Sentiment: Management emphasizes utility strength and constructive regulatory outcomes that support steady utility earnings growth over the long term. Quiver AI summary
• Neutral Sentiment: Avista initiated 2026 non‑GAAP utility earnings guidance of $2.52–$2.72 per share (company guidance provides a planning baseline for investors). Press release — guidance
• Neutral Sentiment: Capital plan and liquidity: Avista expects elevated utility capex (base $585M in 2026, rising later years) and plans ~$230M of long‑term debt and up to $90M of equity issuance in 2026 — supports growth but raises funding/execute risk. Capex & financing details
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 miss: Avista reported Q4 EPS of $0.88 vs. consensus ~$1.01 and revenue shortfalls vs. estimates — an immediate catalyst for the price decline. Earnings snapshot (MarketBeat)
• Negative Sentiment: Guidance & customer headwind: The 2026 guidance midpoint is below sell‑side consensus (company guidance 2.52–2.72 vs. consensus ~2.76) after a large industrial customer said it will resume procuring power independently earlier than expected (a ~$0.12 EPS headwind). Guidance detail (GlobeNewswire)
• Negative Sentiment: Non‑regulated and regulatory drag: Losses in non‑regulated businesses (notably clean‑tech investments) widened and a late‑Dec Washington order tied to Colstrip led to refunds/adjustments — both items pressure GAAP volatility. Quiver — non‑regulated losses & Colstrip note
• Negative Sentiment: Insider sale: SVP Bryan Alden Cox sold 1,768 shares (reducing his stake ~17%), a small but visible insider sale disclosed in an SEC filing. SEC filing — insider sale

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Mizuho set a $42.00 price objective on shares of Avista in a report on Thursday, November 6th. KeyCorp reiterated 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 report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Avista from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Avista from $41.00 to $39.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $39.33.

Institutional Trading of Avista

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AVA. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in shares of Avista by 90.7% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 637 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 303 shares during the period. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new stake in Avista during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in Avista by 54.8% during the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 884 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 313 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in Avista during the second quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Aquatic Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Avista in the 3rd quarter valued at about $43,000. 85.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Avista Company 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.