Park Avenue Securities LLC Lowers Stake in IDACORP, Inc. (NYSE:IDA)

Park Avenue Securities LLC reduced its holdings in shares of IDACORP, Inc. (NYSE:IDA) by 16.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,934 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 565 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC’s holdings in IDACORP were worth $272,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp lifted its position in IDACORP by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp now owns 125,412 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $11,650,000 after acquiring an additional 1,007 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. purchased a new position in IDACORP during the 1st quarter valued at about $41,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new position in IDACORP during the 4th quarter valued at about $54,000. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC purchased a new position in IDACORP in the fourth quarter worth about $223,000. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd raised its holdings in IDACORP by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 19,001 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $1,868,000 after buying an additional 4,328 shares during the last quarter. 89.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

IDACORP Stock Performance

Shares of IDA stock opened at $92.21 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $94.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $93.17. IDACORP, Inc. has a 52 week low of $86.43 and a 52 week high of $106.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.91 billion, a PE ratio of 18.52 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95.

IDACORP (NYSE:IDA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The energy company reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $448.94 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $441.21 million. IDACORP had a return on equity of 8.71% and a net margin of 14.18%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.11 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that IDACORP, Inc. will post 5.36 earnings per share for the current year.

IDACORP Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 30th. Investors of record on Monday, May 6th were given a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.60%. IDACORP’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.67%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

IDA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of IDACORP from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of IDACORP from $88.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 16th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of IDACORP from $98.00 to $93.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 24th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of IDACORP to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $96.40.

Insider Activity at IDACORP

In related news, VP James Bo D. Hanchey sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.09, for a total transaction of $142,635.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,650 shares in the company, valued at $156,898.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.47% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About IDACORP

IDACORP, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, distribution, purchase, and sale of electric energy in the United States. The company operates 17 hydropower generating plants located in southern Idaho and eastern Oregon; three natural gas-fired plants in southern Idaho; and interests in two coal-fired steam electric generating plants located in Wyoming and Nevada.