Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. Acquires 1,202 Shares of Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA)

Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA) by 183.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,856 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,202 shares during the period. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Avista were worth $68,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in Avista in the third quarter valued at $28,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of Avista in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Avista by 43.0% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,723 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 518 shares during the period. Eastern Bank raised its position in shares of Avista by 309.3% during the fourth quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 1,842 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 1,392 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its stake in shares of Avista by 46.9% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,098 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $81,000 after acquiring an additional 670 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.24% of the company’s stock.

Avista Stock Performance

Shares of AVA opened at $36.72 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $36.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $37.67. Avista Co. has a 12 month low of $31.91 and a 12 month high of $39.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.49.

Avista Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 26th were paid a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.17%. Avista’s dividend payout ratio is currently 75.70%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Avista from $40.00 to $39.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th.

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.