Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. Sells 50,414 Shares of Avista Corporation $AVA

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. trimmed its position in Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) by 71.9% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 19,699 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 50,414 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Avista were worth $745,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AVA. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in shares of Avista by 531.2% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,370,502 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $57,383,000 after acquiring an additional 1,153,389 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Avista during the second quarter worth about $29,674,000. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Avista by 52.7% in the second quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 2,110,711 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $80,101,000 after purchasing an additional 728,543 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC increased its holdings in Avista by 8,222.6% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 502,354 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $21,034,000 after purchasing an additional 496,318 shares during the period. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC bought a new position in Avista during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $19,645,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.24% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Wayne O. Manuel sold 1,785 shares of Avista stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.74, for a total transaction of $69,150.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 9,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $382,867.42. This trade represents a 15.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Avista Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:AVA opened at $38.48 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.91. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $39.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $38.06. Avista Corporation has a 52-week low of $34.80 and a 52-week high of $43.09.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.09. Avista had a return on equity of 7.18% and a net margin of 9.62%.The business’s revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.23 EPS. Avista has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.520-2.720 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Avista Corporation will post 2.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avista Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 24th were given a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 24th. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.1%. Avista’s dividend payout ratio is currently 83.40%.

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.