California State Teachers Retirement System Acquires 18,434 Shares of Avista Corporation $AVA

California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in Avista Corporation (NYSE:AVA) by 24.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 95,327 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 18,434 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Avista were worth $3,826,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Avista Stock Performance

AVA opened at $38.80 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $41.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $40.96. The company has a market capitalization of $3.25 billion, a PE ratio of 14.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.63 and a beta of 0.25. Avista Corporation has a 1 year low of $35.50 and a 1 year high of $43.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The utilities provider reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $413.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $426.93 million. Avista had a return on equity of 7.85% and a net margin of 11.83%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.17 EPS. Avista has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.520-2.720 EPS. Research analysts expect that Avista Corporation will post 2.58 EPS for the current year.

Avista Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 18th will be paid a $0.4925 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 18th. This represents a $1.97 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.1%. Avista’s dividend payout ratio is 71.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Avista from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Avista from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Avista from $40.00 to $37.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company set a $39.00 price target on shares of Avista in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Avista from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $39.25.

About Avista

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.