Hsbc Holdings PLC Decreases Stock Position in Avista Corporation $AVA

Hsbc Holdings PLC lessened its stake in shares of Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) by 28.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 40,686 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 16,195 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in Avista were worth $1,633,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in Avista by 5.3% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 65,494 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,741,000 after buying an additional 3,296 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Avista by 11.1% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 69,831 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,924,000 after acquiring an additional 6,967 shares in the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in shares of Avista during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $201,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in shares of Avista by 26.0% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 283,182 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $11,857,000 after acquiring an additional 58,504 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio purchased a new position in shares of Avista in the first quarter valued at $134,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on AVA shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Avista from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Thursday. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Avista from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company set a $39.00 target price on shares of Avista in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Avista from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of 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 and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $40.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Wayne O. Manuel sold 1,593 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.98, for a total transaction of $65,281.14. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 10,521 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $431,150.58. This trade represents a 13.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.78% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Avista Price Performance

Shares of AVA stock opened at $41.55 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $41.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $40.93. Avista Corporation has a 52-week low of $35.50 and a 52-week high of $43.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.55, a P/E/G ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 0.25.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.06. Avista had a return on equity of 7.65% and a net margin of 10.75%.The company had revenue of $570.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $643.55 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.98 EPS. Avista’s quarterly revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Avista has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.520-2.720 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Avista Corporation will post 2.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Avista Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th were paid a $0.4925 dividend. This represents a $1.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 19th. Avista’s dividend payout ratio is currently 78.49%.

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.