Prudential Financial Inc. Has $16.86 Million Stock Holdings in Avista Corporation $AVA

Prudential Financial Inc. reduced its position in Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) by 32.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 444,305 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 215,691 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in Avista were worth $16,861,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AVA. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in Avista by 2.0% in the second quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 14,042 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $533,000 after buying an additional 269 shares during the period. Convergence Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Avista by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Convergence Investment Partners LLC now owns 49,613 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,883,000 after acquiring an additional 286 shares during the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its stake in Avista by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 10,131 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $424,000 after acquiring an additional 313 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in Avista by 54.8% in the 2nd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 884 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 313 shares during the period. Finally, Amalgamated Bank lifted its holdings in Avista by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 22,897 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $869,000 after purchasing an additional 347 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.24% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP David J. Meyer sold 1,367 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.72, for a total transaction of $50,196.24. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 8,394 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $308,227.68. This represents a 14.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Bryan Alden Cox purchased 3,671 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 16th. The stock was bought at an average price of $35.55 per share, for a total transaction of $130,504.05. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 9,989 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $355,108.95. This trade represents a 58.10% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.94% of the company’s stock.

Avista Price Performance

Shares of Avista stock opened at $41.47 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.39. Avista Corporation has a twelve month low of $34.80 and a twelve month high of $43.09. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $38.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $37.96.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.09. Avista had a net margin of 9.13% and a return on equity of 6.86%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.23 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. Avista has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.520-2.720 EPS. Analysts forecast that Avista Corporation will post 2.3 EPS for the current year.

Avista Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 24th will be issued a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 24th. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.7%. Avista’s payout ratio is currently 83.40%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AVA has been the topic of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Avista to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. Mizuho set a $42.00 target price on shares of Avista in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Avista in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Avista from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $40.33.

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.