What is KeyCorp’s Forecast for Avista FY2024 Earnings?

Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA) – Equities research analysts at KeyCorp lifted their FY2024 earnings estimates for Avista in a research note issued on Monday, October 21st. KeyCorp analyst S. Karp now forecasts that the utilities provider will earn $2.43 per share for the year, up from their previous forecast of $2.42. The consensus estimate for Avista’s current full-year earnings is $2.40 per share. KeyCorp also issued estimates for Avista’s Q4 2024 earnings at $1.04 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $3.01 EPS.

Separately, Bank of America started coverage on Avista in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $37.00 price objective on the stock.

Avista Stock Performance

NYSE:AVA opened at $37.78 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $38.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $36.99. The stock has a market cap of $2.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.29, a PEG ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.47. Avista has a 1-year low of $31.54 and a 1-year high of $39.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.07. Avista had a net margin of 10.12% and a return on equity of 7.77%. The firm had revenue of $390.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $386.69 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.23 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Avista Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd were issued a $0.475 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 22nd. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.03%. Avista’s dividend payout ratio is presently 76.92%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP David J. Meyer sold 2,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.32, for a total value of $91,968.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $208,307.52. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Avista

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVA. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lifted its position in shares of Avista by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 6,330 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $245,000 after buying an additional 428 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in Avista by 46.0% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 374,207 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $14,501,000 after acquiring an additional 117,814 shares in the last quarter. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC acquired a new position in Avista during the third quarter worth about $4,725,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Avista in the third quarter worth about $33,390,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of Avista by 23.3% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 26,687 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,034,000 after purchasing an additional 5,035 shares in the last quarter. 85.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Avista Company Profile

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.