Avista Corporation $AVA Shares Sold by RWC Asset Management LLP

RWC Asset Management LLP cut its holdings in Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) by 41.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 249,608 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 176,138 shares during the period. RWC Asset Management LLP’s holdings in Avista were worth $9,620,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AVA. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in shares of Avista by 5.3% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 65,494 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,741,000 after buying an additional 3,296 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Avista by 11.1% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 69,831 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,924,000 after buying an additional 6,967 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new position in shares of Avista in the 1st quarter valued at about $201,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings 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 valued at $11,857,000 after buying an additional 58,504 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio acquired a new position in Avista during the 1st quarter valued at about $134,000. 85.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Avista

In other Avista news, SVP Wayne O. Manuel sold 1,593 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.98, for a total transaction of $65,281.14. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 10,521 shares in the company, valued at approximately $431,150.58. The trade was a 13.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.78% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Avista from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Avista from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 18th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $39.00 target price on shares of Avista in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Avista from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Avista from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $40.50.

Avista Trading Down 0.1%

Avista stock opened at $42.39 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $41.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $40.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.89, a PEG ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.24. Avista Corporation has a 52-week low of $35.50 and a 52-week high of $43.50.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.06. Avista had a net margin of 10.75% and a return on equity of 7.65%. The company had revenue of $570.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $643.55 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.98 EPS. Avista’s revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Avista has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.520-2.720 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Avista Corporation will post 2.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Avista Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th will be given a dividend of $0.4925 per share. This represents a $1.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 19th. Avista’s payout ratio is 78.49%.

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.