Avista (NYSE:AVA) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results

Avista (NYSE:AVA) released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The utilities provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.06, FiscalAI reports. Avista had a return on equity of 7.29% and a net margin of 9.83%.The company had revenue of $555.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $643.55 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.98 earnings per share. Avista’s revenue was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Avista updated its FY 2026 guidance to 2.520-2.720 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Avista’s conference call:

• Avista reported Q1 2026 consolidated EPS of $1.11 and non-GAAP utility earnings of $1.10 per share (vs. $0.98 / $1.01 a year ago) and reaffirmed 2026 non-GAAP utility guidance of $2.52–$2.72, which includes a $0.10 ERM headwind.
• Management expects 2026 utility capital spending of $615 million and $3.4 billion from 2026–2030 (with up to $350 million incremental for a new large-load integration) and plans to issue $230 million of long-term debt and up to $90 million of common stock in 2026.
• Avista is negotiating with a prospective data center customer for up to 500 megawatts of incremental load and is targeting a signed memorandum of understanding by May 31, representing a potentially material growth opportunity.
• The company emphasized grid hardening and wildfire-resilience investments—vegetation management, predictive weather tools and material pre-staging—helped speed restoration after a March wind event that affected ~60,000 customers.
• Regulatory risk remains: Avista’s four-year Washington general rate case has a settlement conference on May 22 and the outcome is uncertain, which could materially affect rates, recovery mechanisms and allowed returns despite proposed off-ramps and new deferral mechanisms.

Avista Stock Down 0.5%

AVA traded down $0.19 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $40.74. 99,001 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 617,921. The stock has a market cap of $3.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.12, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.24. Avista has a 1-year low of $35.50 and a 1-year high of $43.50. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $40.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $40.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

Avista Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 25th were issued a dividend of $0.4925 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 25th. This is a positive change from Avista’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $1.97 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.8%. Avista’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Avista news, SVP Bryan Alden Cox sold 1,768 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.18, for a total transaction of $71,038.24. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 8,401 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $337,552.18. The trade was a 17.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.78% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Avista

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AVA. Corient Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in Avista in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $208,000. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Avista in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $371,000. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV boosted its holdings in shares of Avista by 58.8% in the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 11,862 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $457,000 after buying an additional 4,392 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of Avista by 295.6% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 21,258 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $821,000 after buying an additional 15,885 shares in the last quarter. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new position in Avista during the fourth quarter worth $892,000. Institutional investors own 85.24% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Avista

Here are the key news stories impacting Avista this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 earnings beat and guidance confirmation — Avista reported Q1 GAAP EPS of $1.11 (non‑GAAP $1.10), topping consensus, and confirmed FY‑2026 non‑GAAP utility earnings guidance of $2.52–$2.72 per share, which supports near‑term earnings visibility. GlobeNewswire: Q1 Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Offsetting analyst moves — Mizuho raised its price target to $42 with a “neutral” rating while Barclays cut its target to $40 and set an “equal weight” rating. The revisions are small and conflicting, so they create mixed short‑term sentiment rather than a clear directional catalyst. Benzinga: Analyst Moves
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue shortfall — Q1 revenue was $555M versus street estimates near $644M and fell ~8% year‑over‑year, indicating weaker top‑line trends that could pressure multiple expansion despite the EPS beat. MarketBeat: Q1 Snapshot
• Negative Sentiment: New regulatory risk disclosed in the 2025 Form 10‑K — TipRanks highlights a newly disclosed regulation‑category risk. Regulatory and rate‑case uncertainty can affect utility earnings and capital plans, a longer‑term headwind for sentiment. TipRanks: 10‑K Highlights

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on AVA. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Avista from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Avista from $41.00 to $39.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Avista from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Avista from $41.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Avista from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, April 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $40.00.

About Avista

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.