Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA) Holdings Lifted by Level Four Advisory Services LLC

Level Four Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA) by 12.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 51,890 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,551 shares during the quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Avista were worth $1,901,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AVA. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Avista by 2.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,228,299 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $47,597,000 after purchasing an additional 26,706 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. lifted its position in Avista by 30.7% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 176,459 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,838,000 after purchasing an additional 41,431 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its stake in Avista by 12.2% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 9,557 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $370,000 after purchasing an additional 1,041 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Avista by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 17,430 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $675,000 after purchasing an additional 707 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in shares of Avista by 18.1% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 49,575 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,921,000 after buying an additional 7,581 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.24% of the company’s stock.

Avista Stock Up 2.1 %

AVA stock opened at $40.90 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.28 billion, a PE ratio of 16.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.46. Avista Co. has a 12 month low of $33.00 and a 12 month high of $41.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $38.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $37.76.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.86 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $517.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $487.48 million. Avista had a return on equity of 7.83% and a net margin of 10.24%. Equities research analysts forecast that Avista Co. will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avista Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. This is a positive change from Avista’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.79%. Avista’s dividend payout ratio is currently 86.34%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Scott J. Kinney sold 2,298 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.75, for a total value of $89,047.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 12,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $485,886.25. This represents a 15.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Avista from $40.00 to $39.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th.

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.