Versor Investments LP Sells 13,394 Shares of Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA)

Versor Investments LP lowered its position in shares of Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA) by 18.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 61,205 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 13,394 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP owned about 0.08% of Avista worth $2,242,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Algert Global LLC boosted its stake in Avista by 202.2% in the third quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 57,617 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,233,000 after buying an additional 38,550 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Avista by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 420,527 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $16,295,000 after acquiring an additional 34,829 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Avista by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,828,230 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $70,857,000 after purchasing an additional 27,328 shares in the last quarter. A. D. Beadell Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new position in shares of Avista during the 4th quarter valued at $1,340,000. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC purchased a new position in Avista in the 4th quarter worth $1,672,000. 85.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Avista Stock Performance

Shares of AVA stock opened at $39.83 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.87, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.49. Avista Co. has a fifty-two week low of $32.70 and a fifty-two week high of $40.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.75. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $36.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $37.55.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.86 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $517.00 million during 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%. Analysts expect that Avista Co. will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Avista Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. This is an increase from Avista’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Avista’s dividend payout ratio is currently 78.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Avista from $40.00 to $39.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report 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.