AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV Shares Bought by SG Americas Securities LLC

SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) by 858.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,628 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 7,728 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in AeroVironment were worth $2,717,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 14.3% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,478,114 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $991,089,000 after acquiring an additional 433,830 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in AeroVironment during the 2nd quarter worth $75,690,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in AeroVironment by 75.6% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 609,019 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $173,540,000 after purchasing an additional 262,239 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 54.0% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 398,772 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $113,630,000 after buying an additional 139,880 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rheos Capital Works Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AeroVironment during the third quarter worth about $37,787,000. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 999 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $367.60, for a total value of $367,232.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 17,301 shares in the company, valued at $6,359,847.60. This represents a 5.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Brian Charles Shackley sold 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.92, for a total value of $50,184.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,504,014.48. The trade was a 3.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 2,223 shares of company stock worth $714,883 over the last 90 days. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on AeroVironment from $440.00 to $400.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on AeroVironment from $267.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on AeroVironment from $486.00 to $429.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 12th. New Street Research set a $365.00 price objective on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Monday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $375.41.

Key Headlines Impacting AeroVironment

Here are the key news stories impacting AeroVironment this week:

• Positive Sentiment: U.S. Army contract wins, new partnerships (e.g., Parry Labs) and broader social?media buzz around defense revenue visibility have lifted investor optimism and helped push the shares sharply higher in recent weeks; institutional accumulation and many buy ratings underpin upside expectations. AeroVironment Stock (AVAV) Opinions on U.S. Army Contract Wins
• Positive Sentiment: AeroVironment’s subsidiary VideoRay launched the Mission Specialist Wraith unmanned underwater vehicle — a new product that expands the company’s all?domain autonomous systems offering and can open additional government and commercial revenue streams. Mission Specialist Wraith Signals AeroVironment’s Next Step in Compact Unmanned Underwater Systems Capability
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst coverage and upward price targets (median ~$391, several high targets above $400) plus strong quarterly revenue growth have supported momentum — recent writeups note a ~55% one?month surge as investors price in defense spending tailwinds. AVAV Outperforms Industry in the Past Month: How to Play the Stock?
• Neutral Sentiment: Headline coverage noting recent outperformance and a modest daily gain (+1.6% on Jan. 12) highlights the stock’s short?term strength but is not new fundamental news. AeroVironment (AVAV) Outperforms Broader Market: What You Need to Know
• Neutral Sentiment: Contrarian commentary (e.g., Motley Fool piece recommending another drone stock ahead of AVAV) may temper some retail enthusiasm but is not a direct company development. 1 Stock I’d Buy Before AeroVironment in 2026
• Negative Sentiment: Pomerantz LLP says it is investigating claims on behalf of AeroVironment investors — a potential class?action probe that raises legal/financial risk and can weigh on sentiment until resolved. INVESTOR ALERT: Pomerantz Law Firm Investigates Claims On Behalf of Investors of Aerovironment, Inc. – AVAV
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling continues to appear in filings — most recently CFO Kevin McDonnell sold 999 shares at ~$367.60 — and publicized recurring insider sales can fuel profit?taking or worry some investors about timing. SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Short interest rose in December to roughly 3.14M shares (?6.3% of float) — elevated shorting can increase downward pressure in the near term, though it also raises the potential for squeezes during volatility.

AeroVironment Trading Down 1.8%

NASDAQ:AVAV opened at $363.86 on Wednesday. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 1 year low of $102.25 and a 1 year high of $417.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 4.29 and a current ratio of 5.08. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $282.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $287.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -291.09, a PEG ratio of 5.47 and a beta of 1.16.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, December 9th. The aerospace company reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.43). The company had revenue of $472.51 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $466.16 million. AeroVironment had a positive return on equity of 3.42% and a negative net margin of 5.08%.AeroVironment’s revenue for the quarter was up 150.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.47 earnings per share. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.400-3.550 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AeroVironment Company 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.