AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Upgraded at Raymond James Financial

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) was upgraded by Raymond James Financial from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report issued on Monday, Marketbeat.com reports.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on AVAV. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on AeroVironment from $450.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. UBS Group reduced their target price on AeroVironment from $259.00 to $236.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Citizens Jmp decreased their price target on AeroVironment from $400.00 to $350.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on AeroVironment from $486.00 to $429.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of AeroVironment from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AeroVironment has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $318.78.

AeroVironment Price Performance

Shares of AVAV stock opened at $197.72 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 5.51 and a quick ratio of 4.54. The company has a market capitalization of $9.87 billion, a PE ratio of -45.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 1.26. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $269.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $291.46. AeroVironment has a 12 month low of $102.25 and a 12 month high of $417.86.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 10th. The aerospace company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.68 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $408.05 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $487.94 million. AeroVironment had a negative net margin of 13.93% and a positive return on equity of 3.26%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 143.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.30 EPS. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.750-3.100 EPS. Analysts predict that AeroVironment will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Brian Charles Shackley sold 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.52, for a total value of $42,504.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 5,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,231,340.88. The trade was a 3.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 999 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $367.60, for a total value of $367,232.40. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 17,301 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,359,847.60. The trade was a 5.46% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 4,924 shares of company stock worth $1,486,038 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of AeroVironment

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AVAV. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of AeroVironment by 60.0% during the third quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 80 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC grew its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 7.8% in the third quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 498 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $157,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Bridge LLC increased its stake in AeroVironment by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Legacy Bridge LLC now owns 4,046 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $979,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the period. NewEdge Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in AeroVironment by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 3,709 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $897,000 after buying an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Finally, J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in AeroVironment by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 1,081 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $261,000 after buying an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.