AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Trading 1.9% Higher – Time to Buy?

AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)’s share price rose 1.9% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $150.75 and last traded at $149.37. Approximately 941,535 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 43% from the average session volume of 1,655,870 shares. The stock had previously closed at $146.57.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AVAV. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered shares of AeroVironment from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $210.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price target on shares of AeroVironment from $280.00 to $240.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Wedbush started coverage on AeroVironment in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $250.00 price target for the company. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on AeroVironment from $315.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Clear Str raised AeroVironment to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $266.68.

AeroVironment Stock Up 1.9%

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $165.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $207.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.56 billion, a P/E ratio of -40.59, a PEG ratio of 4.83 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a quick ratio of 3.59, a current ratio of 4.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, June 29th. The aerospace company reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.37. AeroVironment had a positive return on equity of 3.71% and a negative net margin of 9.00%.The company had revenue of $641.62 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $555.97 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.61 EPS. The company’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 expect that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at AeroVironment

In other AeroVironment news, Director Stephen F. Page sold 250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.41, for a total transaction of $43,602.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 49,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,546,264.41. The trade was a 0.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AeroVironment

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in AeroVironment by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 884,395 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $213,956,000 after purchasing an additional 71,903 shares during the last quarter. Heard Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 48.4% during the fourth quarter. Heard Capital LLC now owns 722,150 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $174,681,000 after buying an additional 235,685 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 17.2% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 504,270 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $143,692,000 after buying an additional 73,963 shares in the last quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 18.8% during the first quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 490,426 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $89,772,000 after buying an additional 77,619 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 7.4% in the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 477,055 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $135,937,000 after acquiring an additional 32,721 shares during the last quarter. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About AeroVironment

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.