Avnet (NASDAQ:AVT) Hits New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Avnet, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVT) shares hit a new 52-week high on Friday. The stock traded as high as $105.18 and last traded at $106.1020, with a volume of 56692 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $102.24.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Avnet from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Avnet from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, July 25th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Avnet from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Zacks Research raised shares of Avnet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Avnet from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Avnet currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $93.25.

Avnet Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $8.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.78. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $93.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $84.48.

Avnet (NASDAQ:AVT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.48. The company had revenue of $8.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.56 billion. Avnet had a return on equity of 9.57% and a net margin of 1.21%.Avnet’s quarterly revenue was up 47.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.81 EPS. Avnet has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 2.800-2.900 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Avnet, Inc. will post 10.45 EPS for the current year.

Avnet Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 9th were issued a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 9th. This is a positive change from Avnet’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Avnet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Michael Ryan Mccoy sold 32,052 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.10, for a total transaction of $2,919,937.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 76,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,985,001.40. This trade represents a 29.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Philip Gallagher sold 51,900 shares of Avnet stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.46, for a total transaction of $5,110,074.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 168,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,632,158.58. The trade was a 23.50% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Avnet

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVT. QRG Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Avnet during the second quarter valued at about $253,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Avnet by 5.1% during the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 16,533 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,468,000 after acquiring an additional 795 shares during the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd grew its position in Avnet by 127.0% during the 2nd quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 22,700 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,016,000 after acquiring an additional 12,699 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new position in Avnet in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $186,000. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its stake in Avnet by 59.8% in the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 149,226 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,254,000 after purchasing an additional 55,848 shares during the period. 95.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Avnet

Avnet, Inc is a global technology distributor and solutions provider that connects electronic component manufacturers with customers ranging from original equipment manufacturers and contract manufacturers to design engineers and startups. The company distributes semiconductors, interconnect products, passive and electromechanical components, and embedded computing products used in industrial, automotive, communications, aerospace and defense, healthcare, and consumer applications.

In addition to component distribution, Avnet provides engineering and design support, embedded systems, product customization, supply chain management, logistics, and other services intended to help customers move products from concept and prototyping through production.