Insider Selling: Aveanna Healthcare (NASDAQ:AVAH) CAO Sells $80,615.01 in Stock

Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAH) CAO Deborah Stewart sold 11,181 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.21, for a total value of $80,615.01. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 301,807 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,176,028.47. The trade was a 3.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Deborah Stewart also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, February 18th, Deborah Stewart sold 10,896 shares of Aveanna Healthcare stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.38, for a total value of $80,412.48.
• On Tuesday, February 17th, Deborah Stewart sold 7,738 shares of Aveanna Healthcare stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.65, for a total transaction of $59,195.70.
• On Friday, January 2nd, Deborah Stewart sold 11,962 shares of Aveanna Healthcare stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.85, for a total transaction of $93,901.70.
• On Wednesday, December 31st, Deborah Stewart sold 11,275 shares of Aveanna Healthcare stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.18, for a total transaction of $92,229.50.
• On Tuesday, December 30th, Deborah Stewart sold 11,379 shares of Aveanna Healthcare stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.36, for a total transaction of $95,128.44.

Aveanna Healthcare Price Performance

Shares of AVAH opened at $7.34 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $8.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $8.50. The firm has a market cap of $1.53 billion, a PE ratio of 20.39 and a beta of 2.06. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 140.39. Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $3.67 and a 1-year high of $10.32.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group boosted their price target on Aveanna Healthcare from $9.50 to $10.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Aveanna Healthcare from $9.00 to $11.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Aveanna Healthcare in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $13.00 price target on shares of Aveanna Healthcare in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on Aveanna Healthcare from $9.50 to $10.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Aveanna Healthcare has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $11.06.

Key Aveanna Healthcare News

Here are the key news stories impacting Aveanna Healthcare this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Institutional buying in recent quarters — firms including Invesco, Millennium, Zimmer Partners and others increased or established positions in Q4, a vote of confidence that can support the stock over the medium term. MarketBeat Institutional Activity
• Positive Sentiment: Despite recent sales, insiders still retain large, multi?million?dollar stakes (CEO, CFO and others remain major shareholders), which can temper panic selling and signal some continued alignment with shareholders. SEC Filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short interest shows zero shares for mid?February — this is almost certainly a reporting/data anomaly and does not indicate genuine lack of short interest. Treat the short?interest figure cautiously. Short Interest Data
• Neutral Sentiment: Trading volume today was below recent averages; low volume can amplify price moves when large blocks or news hit the tape (higher intraday volatility risk).
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst coverage remains mixed: consensus is around a “Hold” with an average target near $11 — helpful context for longer?term positioning but not an immediate catalyst. Analyst Summary
• Negative Sentiment: Large, concentrated insider selling Feb. 17–19 by CEO Jeff Shaner — roughly 461,900 shares sold across three days (~$3.4M reported proceeds) — is the primary negative catalyst driving downward pressure as the market interprets sizeable CEO disposals as risk reduction. CEO Sales SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Additional senior/executive selling (CFO Matthew Buckhalter, CAO Deborah Stewart, and other insiders including Edwin C. Reisz and Patrick A. Cunningham) involved hundreds of thousands of shares total across the same dates — a reinforcing negative signal that likely amplified the pullback. Other Insider Filings
• Negative Sentiment: Independent coverage singled out the insider selling as the main reason for a recent ~5–6% pullback, increasing market attention on the disposals and reinforcing short?term selling pressure. AAII Article

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aveanna Healthcare

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AVAH. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 1,001.5% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 360,464 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,945,000 after purchasing an additional 327,738 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Aveanna Healthcare by 12.7% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 216,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,810,000 after buying an additional 24,447 shares during the period. Zimmer Partners LP purchased a new stake in Aveanna Healthcare in the 4th quarter worth $6,189,000. Voloridge Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Aveanna Healthcare during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,915,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 1,007.1% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,114,717 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,107,000 after acquiring an additional 1,014,030 shares in the last quarter. 87.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Aveanna Healthcare Company Profile

Aveanna Healthcare, Inc (NASDAQ: AVAH) is a national provider of in-home health care services, specializing in pediatric skilled nursing, therapy, and related support for medically complex and chronically ill children. The company delivers a range of clinical and therapeutic solutions designed to enable patients to receive care in the comfort of their own homes, reducing the need for hospital stays and long-term institutional care. Aveanna’s offerings include registered nursing, physical, occupational and speech therapy, behavioral health counseling, and durable medical equipment coordination.

In addition to pediatric home health services, Aveanna operates adult home health and personal care support programs, assisting elderly and disabled adults with daily living activities, medication management, and rehabilitation therapies.