Gamco Investors INC. ET AL Has $22.07 Million Stock Position in Avista Corporation $AVA

Gamco Investors INC. ET AL increased its stake in shares of Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) by 8.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 549,732 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 42,428 shares during the quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL’s holdings in Avista were worth $22,066,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Moors & Cabot Inc. grew its stake in shares of Avista by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 10,182 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $392,000 after buying an additional 251 shares in the last quarter. Lido Advisors LLC grew its position in Avista by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 7,941 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $302,000 after acquiring an additional 251 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in shares of Avista by 14.4% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,020 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $78,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Avista by 14.2% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,279 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its stake in shares of Avista by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 18,621 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $718,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. 85.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Avista

In other Avista news, SVP Wayne O. Manuel sold 1,593 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.98, for a total transaction of $65,281.14. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 10,521 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $431,150.58. This represents a 13.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.78% of the company’s stock.

Avista Stock Performance

NYSE AVA opened at $42.02 on Friday. Avista Corporation has a twelve month low of $35.50 and a twelve month high of $43.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market cap of $3.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.74, a PEG ratio of 3.93 and a beta of 0.25. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $41.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $40.90.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $570.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $643.55 million. Avista had a return on equity of 7.65% and a net margin of 10.75%.Avista’s quarterly revenue was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.98 EPS. Avista has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.520-2.720 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Avista Corporation will post 2.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Avista Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th were issued a dividend of $0.4925 per share. This represents a $1.97 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 19th. Avista’s dividend payout ratio is presently 78.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays increased their price objective on Avista from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Avista from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 18th. Mizuho raised their price target on Avista from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Zacks Research raised Avista from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $39.00 target price on Avista in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $40.00.

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.