Aveanna Healthcare (NASDAQ:AVAH) Shares Gap Up Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAH)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $6.77, but opened at $7.18. Aveanna Healthcare shares last traded at $7.3550, with a volume of 687,428 shares trading hands.

The company reported $0.18 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.13 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $647.92 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $613.22 million. Aveanna Healthcare had a net margin of 9.25% and a return on equity of 481.69%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on AVAH shares. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Aveanna Healthcare from $11.00 to $9.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. UBS Group upped their target price on Aveanna Healthcare from $9.50 to $10.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Aveanna Healthcare from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of Aveanna Healthcare from $9.00 to $8.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Aveanna Healthcare from $11.00 to $9.50 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $10.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Jeff Shaner sold 173,225 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.21, for a total transaction of $1,248,952.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,650,892 shares in the company, valued at $19,112,931.32. The trade was a 6.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Deborah Stewart sold 11,181 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.21, for a total transaction of $80,615.01. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 301,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,176,028.47. The trade was a 3.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 738,957 shares of company stock valued at $5,458,175 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 5.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Aveanna Healthcare by 21.2% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 26,280 shares of the company’s stock worth $142,000 after acquiring an additional 4,602 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 8.3% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 339,853 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,842,000 after acquiring an additional 25,974 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 522.0% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 75,081 shares of the company’s stock worth $407,000 after purchasing an additional 63,010 shares during the period. Creative Planning raised its position in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 15.1% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 47,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 6,171 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 65.0% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 158,265 shares of the company’s stock worth $828,000 after purchasing an additional 62,348 shares in the last quarter. 87.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Aveanna Healthcare Trading Up 9.1%

The firm has a market cap of $1.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.24 and a beta of 1.93. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $6.70 and its 200-day moving average is $7.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.62.

Aveanna Healthcare Company Profile

Aveanna Healthcare, Inc (NASDAQ: AVAH) is a national provider of in-home health care services, specializing in pediatric skilled nursing, therapy, and related support for medically complex and chronically ill children. The company delivers a range of clinical and therapeutic solutions designed to enable patients to receive care in the comfort of their own homes, reducing the need for hospital stays and long-term institutional care. Aveanna’s offerings include registered nursing, physical, occupational and speech therapy, behavioral health counseling, and durable medical equipment coordination.

In addition to pediatric home health services, Aveanna operates adult home health and personal care support programs, assisting elderly and disabled adults with daily living activities, medication management, and rehabilitation therapies.