AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Trading Up 7.8% – Still a Buy?

AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)’s share price rose 7.8% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $266.21 and last traded at $262.99. Approximately 1,368,296 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 17% from the average daily volume of 1,656,600 shares. The stock had previously closed at $243.87.

AeroVironment News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting AeroVironment this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan initiated coverage with an Overweight rating and a $320 price target (roughly +21.7% vs. recent levels), providing a high?profile analyst endorsement that can attract buyers and momentum flows. AeroVironment Stock Soars As JPMorgan Sets $320 Target
• Positive Sentiment: Sector narrative: coverage and commentary highlight that small drones are a durable part of U.S. and allied military strategy, supporting sustained demand for AVAV’s products and reinforcing the bullish analyst case. Why AeroVironment Stock Climbed Today
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation comparison pieces (e.g., CAE vs. AVAV) are circulating; these provide context for longer?term investors but are less likely to move intraday trading than the JPMorgan initiation. CAE or AVAV: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short?interest data in recent filings appears to show 0 shares / NaN changes — likely a reporting anomaly and not meaningful market pressure right now. (No actionable signal from short?interest figures.)
• Negative Sentiment: Insider sale: Director Stephen F. Page sold 500 shares at ~$254.95 (small relative to his ~50k share holding). While insider selling can be perceived negatively, this transaction is modest and not an obvious red flag for fundamentals. SEC Form 4

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on AVAV shares. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price objective on shares of AeroVironment from $335.00 to $315.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on AeroVironment in a research note on Tuesday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $320.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $390.00 target price on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $373.35.

AeroVironment Stock Performance

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 firm’s 50-day moving average price is $284.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $293.78. The stock has a market cap of $13.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 91.34, a PEG ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 1.23.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Brian Charles Shackley sold 200 shares of AeroVironment stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.92, for a total transaction of $50,184.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,504,014.48. The trade was a 3.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Stephen F. Page sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $254.95, for a total value of $127,475.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 50,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,875,229.95. This represents a 0.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 4,089 shares of company stock valued at $1,285,160 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of AeroVironment

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AVAV. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 46.9% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 12,091 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,925,000 after purchasing an additional 3,860 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 123.4% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 16,802 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,064,000 after purchasing an additional 9,281 shares during the period. Defiance ETFs LLC purchased a new position in AeroVironment in the 4th quarter valued at $1,137,000. Kovack Advisors Inc. raised its position in AeroVironment by 454.7% during the 4th quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 5,026 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,216,000 after buying an additional 4,120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FIL Ltd lifted its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 9,731 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,354,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. 86.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.