Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Takes Position in Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new position in Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 18,879 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $790,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its position in Avista by 2,474.1% during the fourth quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 695 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 668 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Avista by 117.8% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 858 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 464 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Avista by 252.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 916 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 656 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Avista by 168.7% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,421 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $89,000 after buying an additional 1,520 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp bought a new position in Avista during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $176,000. 85.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Avista Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AVA opened at $38.27 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.08 billion, a PE ratio of 16.35, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.40. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $38.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $38.56. Avista Corporation has a 1-year low of $33.95 and a 1-year high of $43.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.64.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.05 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $603.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $636.30 million. Avista had a return on equity of 7.28% and a net margin of 9.63%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.91 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Avista Corporation will post 2.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avista Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th were issued a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 13th. Avista’s payout ratio is currently 83.76%.

Insider Activity at Avista

In other Avista news, VP Scott J. Kinney sold 1,024 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.82, for a total value of $38,727.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 11,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $435,497.30. The trade was a 8.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.96% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Avista Profile

Avista Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an electric and natural gas utility company. It operates in two segments, Avista Utilities and AEL&P. The Avista Utilities segment provides electric distribution and transmission, and natural gas distribution services in parts of eastern Washington and northern Idaho; and natural gas distribution services in parts of northeastern and southwestern Oregon, as well as generates electricity in Washington, Idaho, Oregon, and Montana.