JPMorgan Chase & Co. Raises Stock Position in Avista Corporation $AVA

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) by 31.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 356,035 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 86,145 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 0.44% of Avista worth $13,462,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Avista by 8.0% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 519,946 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $19,659,000 after purchasing an additional 38,651 shares during the period. Inspire Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Avista during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,118,000. Nuance Investments LLC raised its holdings in Avista by 50.4% during the 3rd quarter. Nuance Investments LLC now owns 288,203 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $10,897,000 after buying an additional 96,532 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Avista by 70.9% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 79,381 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,013,000 after buying an additional 32,926 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC lifted its position in Avista by 146.6% in the third quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC now owns 76,039 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,875,000 after buying an additional 45,200 shares during the last quarter. 85.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Avista Stock Performance

Shares of Avista stock opened at $39.90 on Friday. 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 stock’s fifty day moving average is $40.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $39.36. Avista Corporation has a 52 week low of $35.50 and a 52 week high of $43.50. The company has a market capitalization of $3.28 billion, a PE ratio of 16.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.28.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last released its earnings results on Saturday, January 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter. Avista had a return on equity of 7.29% and a net margin of 9.83%. As a group, analysts expect that Avista Corporation will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Avista Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th were given a $0.4925 dividend. This is a positive change from Avista’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 25th. This represents a $1.97 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.9%. Avista’s dividend payout ratio is presently 82.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective 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. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Avista from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Barclays started coverage on shares of Avista in a report on Monday, March 9th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $40.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Avista from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $39.50.

Insider Transactions at Avista

In other Avista news, SVP Bryan Alden Cox sold 1,768 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.18, for a total value of $71,038.24. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 8,401 shares in the company, valued at $337,552.18. This represents a 17.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.