South Dakota Investment Council Has $1.47 Million Holdings in AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV

South Dakota Investment Council boosted its holdings in shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) by 113.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,025 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,265 shares during the period. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in AeroVironment were worth $1,469,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVAV. Atreides Management LP bought a new stake in shares of AeroVironment in the first quarter worth about $29,595,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of AeroVironment during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 19.3% during the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 37,880 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $6,934,000 after purchasing an additional 6,120 shares in the last quarter. Rokos Capital Management LLP bought a new position in shares of AeroVironment during the 1st quarter valued at about $2,504,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in shares of AeroVironment in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $3,361,000. 86.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Stephen F. Page sold 250 shares of AeroVironment stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.41, for a total value of $43,602.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 49,001 shares in the company, valued at $8,546,264.41. This trade represents a 0.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.81% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on AVAV shares. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 target price on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Wedbush initiated coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price target on shares of AeroVironment from $280.00 to $240.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of AeroVironment from $305.00 to $229.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of AeroVironment from $315.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $266.68.

AeroVironment Stock Up 1.9%

NASDAQ:AVAV opened at $149.37 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $165.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $207.19. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 52-week low of $135.20 and a 52-week high of $417.86. The company has a market cap of $7.56 billion, a PE ratio of -40.59, a PEG ratio of 4.98 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 3.59 and a current ratio of 4.30.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last released its earnings results on Monday, June 29th. The aerospace company reported $1.84 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 firm had revenue of $641.62 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $555.97 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.61 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue 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, sell-side analysts expect that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AeroVironment Profile

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.