AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) Receives Consensus Rating of “Buy” from Analysts

AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) has received an average rating of “Buy” from the eight research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $225.20.

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded AeroVironment from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $240.00 to $230.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th.

Insider Activity at AeroVironment

In related news, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 396 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.73, for a total value of $78,697.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 16,472 shares in the company, valued at $3,273,480.56. This trade represents a 2.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Baillie Gifford & Co. increased its holdings in AeroVironment by 29.1% in the third quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 1,951,393 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $391,254,000 after purchasing an additional 439,717 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in AeroVironment in the fourth quarter valued at $46,789,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in AeroVironment by 19,950.0% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 267,066 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $53,547,000 after purchasing an additional 265,734 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in AeroVironment by 155.1% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 321,479 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $64,457,000 after purchasing an additional 195,443 shares during the period. Finally, Stephens Investment Management Group LLC increased its holdings in AeroVironment by 40.0% in the fourth quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 541,541 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $83,338,000 after purchasing an additional 154,703 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.38% of the company’s stock.

AeroVironment Price Performance

AeroVironment stock opened at $179.35 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $167.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $186.68. AeroVironment has a one year low of $121.38 and a one year high of $236.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 4.61 and a quick ratio of 3.36. The firm has a market cap of $5.06 billion, a PE ratio of 103.07 and a beta of 0.52.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, December 4th. The aerospace company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.29). The firm had revenue of $188.46 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $181.80 million. AeroVironment had a net margin of 6.39% and a return on equity of 8.12%. AeroVironment’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.97 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that AeroVironment will post 3.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AeroVironment Company Profile

AeroVironment, Inc designs, develops, produces, delivers, and supports a portfolio of robotic systems and related services for government agencies and businesses in the United States and internationally. It operates through Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (SUAS), Tactical Missile System (TMS), Medium Unmanned Aircraft Systems (MUAS), and High Altitude Pseudo-Satellite Systems (HAPS) segments.