AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Trading Up 5.7% – Time to Buy?

AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) rose 5.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $151.88 and last traded at $149.29. Approximately 2,189,442 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 30% from the average session volume of 1,688,418 shares. The stock had previously closed at $141.22.

Key Headlines Impacting AeroVironment

Here are the key news stories impacting AeroVironment this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Raymond James upgraded AeroVironment to Outperform and set a $210 price target, saying the company’s improving bookings and recovering backlog strengthen the growth outlook. Several reports also highlighted potential upside tied to Army-related contract opportunities. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: One article noted AeroVironment’s role in national security and Ohio biomanufacturing, which may support the long-term defense narrative, but it does not appear to be a near-term stock catalyst. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms announced or reminded investors about a securities fraud class action against AeroVironment, with a July 27, 2026 lead-plaintiff deadline. The repeated legal notices suggest continued investor concern over alleged disclosure issues tied to the earlier stock decline, which can weigh on sentiment. Article Title

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Zacks Research raised AeroVironment from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Clear Str raised AeroVironment to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on AeroVironment from $305.00 to $229.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AeroVironment has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $266.68.

AeroVironment Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $168.17 and a 200-day moving average of $216.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -38.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.08 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a current ratio of 4.30, a quick ratio of 3.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last released its earnings results on Monday, June 29th. The aerospace company reported $1.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.37. AeroVironment had a negative net margin of 9.00% and a positive return on equity of 3.71%. The firm had revenue of $641.62 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $555.97 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.61 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 133.3% compared to the same quarter last year. AeroVironment has set its FY 2027 guidance at 3.020-3.340 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at AeroVironment

In other news, Director Stephen F. Page sold 250 shares of AeroVironment stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.41, for a total transaction of $43,602.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 49,001 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,546,264.41. This trade represents a 0.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. F m Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of AeroVironment in the fourth quarter worth $1,775,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in AeroVironment during the fourth quarter valued at $94,655,000. MYDA Advisors LLC purchased a new position in AeroVironment in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,628,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in AeroVironment by 92.2% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 20,173 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $5,168,000 after purchasing an additional 9,675 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in AeroVironment by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 884,395 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $213,956,000 after purchasing an additional 71,903 shares during the last quarter. 86.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AeroVironment Company Profile

AeroVironment, Inc (NASDAQ:AVAV) is a technology company specializing in unmanned aerial systems (UAS), tactical missiles and precision loitering munitions, electric vehicle charging and scalable energy systems. Headquartered in Monrovia, California, the company develops solutions for defense, public safety and commercial markets. Their offerings include small UAS for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, as well as advanced weapons systems designed to meet the needs of modern military operations.

The company’s unmanned aerial systems portfolio features platforms such as the Raven, Puma and Switchblade series, which are deployed by the U.S.