AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) executives used the company’s 2026 Investor Day in New York to outline a plan to roughly double revenue by fiscal 2030, supported by new defense programs, expanded production capacity and higher spending on research and development.
Chairman, President and CEO Wahid Nawabi said the company has expanded significantly since its 2024 Investor Day, describing AeroVironment as a roughly $2 billion business with about 4,000 employees, more than 60,000 systems fielded and customers in more than 55 countries. He said the company is organized into two segments: Autonomous Systems, or AxS, and Space, Cyber and Directed Energy.
“We have built our portfolio very deliberately, to meet the rising demands of the pretty much highest-priority items that are in the U.S. Department of War’s strategic needs and capability gaps,” Nawabi said.
Fiscal 2030 Targets Call for Revenue of $3.5 Billion to $4 Billion
Chief Financial Officer Sean Woodward said AeroVironment is targeting fiscal 2030 revenue of $3.5 billion to $4 billion, representing a compound annual growth rate of 15% to 20% from fiscal 2026. The company ended fiscal 2026 with nearly $2 billion in revenue, $2.7 billion in total backlog and adjusted EBITDA margins of 14.5%.
For fiscal 2027, Woodward said the company expects top-line growth of 10% at the midpoint of its guidance range. He said that figure excludes revenue related to the SCAR BADGER program and excludes incremental Ukraine-related revenue.
By fiscal 2030, Woodward said AeroVironment expects adjusted EBITDA margins to improve to 18% to 20%, a 350- to 550-basis-point increase from fiscal 2026. He said adjusted EBITDA is expected to rise from $286 million in fiscal 2026 to a range of $630 million to $800 million by fiscal 2030.
Woodward said the growth outlook is expected to be driven by several operating groups, including Precision Strike and Defensive Systems, Space and Directed Energy, unmanned aircraft systems, Cyber & Mission Solutions, and other all-domain systems such as ground robots and underwater vehicles.
Company Plans Heavy Fiscal 2027 Investment Year
Executives emphasized that fiscal 2027 will be an investment year. Woodward said AeroVironment expects capital expenditures of 12% to 14% of revenue in fiscal 2027, or nearly $300 million, as the company expands production capacity and infrastructure.
Chief Operating Officer Rob Smith said the company is investing in facilities in Albuquerque, New Mexico; Salt Lake City, Utah; Huntsville, Alabama; and Northern and Southern California. He said Salt Lake City will support Switchblade production, Albuquerque will support LOCUST directed-energy systems and Huntsville will support Freedom Eagle-1, the company’s kinetic counter-UAS interceptor missile program.
Smith said the company’s capital investments are expected to support about $4 billion of additional manufacturing capacity. He also said AeroVironment has reduced its supplier base from more than 3,000 a year ago to about 1,400 and that 92% of parts are dual sourced. He said 98% of the company’s parts are NDAA-compliant.
Woodward said the elevated capital spending is expected to decline after fiscal 2027 toward more historical levels. In response to an analyst question, he clarified that AeroVironment does not expect to be free cash flow positive in fiscal 2027, but expects positive free cash flow from fiscal 2028 through fiscal 2030.
Executives Highlight Recent Contract Wins and Program Pipeline
Chief Growth Officer Church Hutton said AeroVironment has more than 20 products either in production or entering production. He highlighted several recent awards and program opportunities, including:
- A $117 million U.S. Army Long-Range Reconnaissance award for P550.
- A $186 million task order for Switchblade 600 under the Lethal Unmanned Systems Directed Requirement contract.
- A $17 million Army award for Red Dragon, the company’s one-way attack capability.
- A $500 million sole-source IDIQ for RF counter-UAS, supported by the Titan system, with an $81 million first delivery order.
- More than $350 million, approaching $400 million, in laser communications wins in the last fiscal year.
Hutton said AeroVironment expects to compete for more than $35 billion of opportunities from fiscal 2027 through fiscal 2030. Those opportunities include programs in multi-mission ISR, strike, counter-UAS and space and advanced technologies.
“We are working with customers we know, relationships that we have, products that they need to solve problems that are their highest priorities,” Hutton said.
Counter-UAS and Directed Energy Identified as Key Growth Areas
Executives repeatedly pointed to counter-UAS as a major growth market. AeroVironment’s counter-drone portfolio includes Titan RF jamming systems, LOCUST laser weapon systems and Freedom Eagle-1 kinetic interceptors.
Mary Clum, president of Space, Cyber and Directed Energy, said the LOCUST system has demonstrated mobility and modularity, including testing on multiple vehicles and a roll-on, roll-off containerized configuration for Navy use. Smith said the company’s directed-energy product has been deployed operationally and tested by both the Navy and the Army, including on the USS George H.W. Bush.
Nawabi said he views laser weapon systems for counter-UAS as being at an adoption inflection point similar to where loitering munitions were several years ago. He cited cost per shot, mobility and reliability as potential advantages of LOCUST, and said the U.S. Army’s Enduring High Energy Laser program could be a key market catalyst.
International Expansion and M&A Remain Part of Strategy
Executives said international growth is a major focus. Hutton said AeroVironment recorded more than $500 million in international sales in fiscal 2026 and sees demand in Europe, Latin America, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific for counter-UAS, strike and long-range ISR systems.
Woodward said international revenue represented about 28% of fiscal 2026 revenue after the BlueHalo acquisition changed the company’s mix, and he expects that percentage to increase by fiscal 2030, though not necessarily return to prior levels above 50%.
Nawabi also said mergers and acquisitions remain a tool to fill capability gaps, but are not the company’s primary growth strategy. He said the fiscal 2030 outlook is primarily organic and that the company will remain “judicious” given current valuation levels in the market.
In closing, Nawabi said the company is positioned in markets that are receiving increased defense investment and has a portfolio aligned with customer priorities. He said AeroVironment will update investors as new awards and program milestones develop.
About AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV)
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.
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