Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the seven brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $39.75.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AVA. Wells Fargo & Company set a $39.00 target price on Avista in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Barclays decreased their price target on Avista from $42.00 to $39.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 15th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Avista from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Zacks Research raised Avista from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Avista from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 18th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Avista

In related news, SVP Wayne O. Manuel sold 1,593 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 10,521 shares in the company, valued at $431,150.58. This represents a 13.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.78% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Avista

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Avista by 359.4% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,282,508 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $48,492,000 after acquiring an additional 1,003,362 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Avista by 105.1% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,137,236 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $43,829,000 after purchasing an additional 582,742 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of Avista by 37,219.7% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 541,136 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $20,855,000 after purchasing an additional 539,686 shares during the period. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its stake in shares of Avista by 1,723.9% during the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 442,427 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $16,728,000 after purchasing an additional 418,170 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp increased its holdings in Avista by 8.3% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,191,896 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $197,032,000 after purchasing an additional 398,446 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.24% of the company’s stock.

Avista Stock Performance

Shares of Avista stock opened at $41.34 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $41.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $40.58. Avista has a fifty-two week low of $35.50 and a fifty-two week high of $43.50. The firm has a market cap of $3.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.47, a P/E/G ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.25.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $570.00 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 business’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.98 EPS. Avista has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.520-2.720 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Avista will post 2.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avista Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th were given a dividend of $0.4925 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 19th. This represents a $1.97 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.8%. Avista’s payout ratio is currently 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.