KeyCorp Research Analysts Lower Earnings Estimates for Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA)

Posted by Defense World Staff on Jul 21st, 2023

Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA – Free Report) – Equities researchers at KeyCorp cut their Q2 2023 earnings per share estimates for shares of Avista in a report issued on Tuesday, July 18th. KeyCorp analyst S. Karp now expects that the utilities provider will earn $0.15 per share for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $0.19. The consensus estimate for Avista’s current full-year earnings is $2.32 per share. KeyCorp also issued estimates for Avista’s Q4 2023 earnings at $1.21 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $2.43 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $2.66 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $2.76 EPS.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on AVA. Guggenheim lowered their price target on Avista from $35.00 to $33.00 in a report on Friday, July 7th. StockNews.com started coverage on Avista in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a “sell” rating on the stock.

Avista Stock Performance

NYSE:AVA opened at $39.56 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $40.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $41.60. Avista has a twelve month low of $35.72 and a twelve month high of $45.28. The stock has a market cap of $3.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.27, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08.

Avista (NYSE:AVA – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 3rd. The utilities provider reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.16 by ($0.43). Avista had a return on equity of 6.02% and a net margin of 8.04%. The company had revenue of $474.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $485.37 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.99 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis.

Avista Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 26th were paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 25th. Avista’s payout ratio is presently 98.93%.

Insider Activity

In other Avista news, EVP Mark T. Thies sold 46,006 shares of Avista stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.45, for a total transaction of $1,906,948.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 95,467 shares in the company, valued at $3,957,107.15. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Avista news, VP Scott J. Kinney purchased 1,257 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 15th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $40.08 per share, for a total transaction of $50,380.56. Following the completion of the purchase, the vice president now directly owns 1,257 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,380.56. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Mark T. Thies sold 46,006 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.45, for a total value of $1,906,948.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 95,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,957,107.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 49,806 shares of company stock worth $2,062,843 in the last quarter. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Avista by 231.2% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,048,535 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $511,460,000 after acquiring an additional 8,410,300 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Avista by 624.7% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,945,495 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $130,603,000 after acquiring an additional 2,539,057 shares during the period. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Avista by 163.8% in the first quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 1,459,339 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $61,949,000 after acquiring an additional 906,050 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Avista in the fourth quarter worth $30,554,000. Finally, Susquehanna International Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Avista by 2,186.8% in the fourth quarter. Susquehanna International Group LLP now owns 534,545 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $23,702,000 after acquiring an additional 511,170 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.15% of the company’s stock.

About Avista

(Get Free Report)

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.