Avista (NYSE:AVA) Upgraded by Mizuho to “Neutral”

Mizuho upgraded shares of Avista (NYSE:AVA) from an underperform rating to a neutral rating in a report issued on Friday morning, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $36.00 target price on the utilities provider’s stock, up from their previous target price of $32.00.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Avista from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note on Thursday. Guggenheim raised Avista from a sell rating to a neutral rating and set a $34.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $35.00.

Avista Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE AVA traded up $0.51 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $37.30. 514,268 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 466,379. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.48 and a beta of 0.48. Avista has a 52-week low of $30.53 and a 52-week high of $44.76. The company’s 50-day moving average is $34.47 and its 200-day moving average is $34.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.97.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by ($0.09). Avista had a net margin of 9.96% and a return on equity of 7.65%. The company had revenue of $594.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $469.34 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.73 earnings per share. Avista’s revenue was up 29.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Avista will post 2.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Avista Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.475 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.09%. Avista’s dividend payout ratio is presently 78.84%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avista

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Avista in the 4th quarter valued at about $935,000. Algert Global LLC acquired a new position in shares of Avista in the third quarter worth $966,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. acquired a new stake in shares of Avista during the third quarter valued at $3,175,000. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D raised its position in shares of Avista by 30.4% in the third quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 74,468 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,411,000 after buying an additional 17,373 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in Avista by 13.2% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,820,958 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $58,944,000 after acquiring an additional 212,343 shares during the last quarter. 85.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Avista

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.