Avista (NYSE:AVA) Shares Cross Above 200 Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?
by Teresa Graham · The Cerbat GemAvista Corporation (NYSE:AVA – Get Free Report)’s share price passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $38.14 and traded as high as $39.58. Avista shares last traded at $39.18, with a volume of 464,255 shares changing hands.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of research firms recently weighed in on AVA. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Avista in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Avista to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. Mizuho set a $42.00 target price on Avista in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target 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 stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $40.33.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on AVA
Avista Stock Down 0.7%
The stock’s fifty day moving average is $39.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.15. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The company has a market capitalization of $3.17 billion, a PE ratio of 16.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.30.
Avista (NYSE:AVA – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.09. Avista had a net margin of 9.62% and a return on equity of 7.18%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.23 earnings per share. Avista has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.520-2.720 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Avista Corporation will post 2.3 EPS for the current year.
Avista Dividend Announcement
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 24th were paid a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 24th. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.0%. Avista’s dividend payout ratio is presently 83.40%.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In related news, SVP Wayne O. Manuel sold 1,785 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.74, for a total value of $69,150.90. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 9,883 shares in the company, valued at approximately $382,867.42. The trade was a 15.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Trading of Avista
Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Avista by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,835,413 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $409,687,000 after buying an additional 170,388 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Avista by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,191,896 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $197,032,000 after acquiring an additional 398,446 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Avista by 52.7% during the second quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 2,110,711 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $80,101,000 after acquiring an additional 728,543 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Avista by 2.4% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,958,034 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $74,316,000 after acquiring an additional 46,321 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Avista by 0.4% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,506,699 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $56,967,000 after acquiring an additional 6,567 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.24% of the company’s stock.
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.