Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 2,897,441 shares, a decline of 22.0% from the December 15th total of 3,714,358 shares. Currently, 3.6% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 858,066 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.4 days. Based on an average daily volume of 858,066 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.4 days. Currently, 3.6% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on AVA shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Avista in a report on Monday, December 29th. Mizuho set a $42.00 price target on Avista in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Avista to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Avista from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Avista has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $40.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Wayne O. Manuel sold 1,785 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was 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 approximately $382,867.42. This represents a 15.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AVA. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Avista during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Avista during the second quarter worth approximately $34,000. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Avista by 54.8% in the 2nd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 884 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 313 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in Avista during the second quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Avista during the 3rd quarter worth about $43,000. 85.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Avista Price Performance

Shares of AVA stock traded up $0.09 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $40.18. 746,240 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 603,003. Avista has a twelve month low of $35.47 and a twelve month high of $43.09. 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 company’s 50-day simple moving average is $39.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.21. The firm has a market cap of $3.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.30.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%.Avista’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.23 earnings per share. Avista has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.520-2.720 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Avista will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Avista Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, November 24th were given a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 24th. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.9%. Avista’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.