AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Wedbush

Wedbush upgraded shares of AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) to a strong-buy rating in a research report report published on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of AeroVironment to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. KeyCorp lowered their price target on AeroVironment from $295.00 to $220.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price objective on AeroVironment from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group reduced their price objective on AeroVironment from $172.00 to $166.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Finally, BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $205.00 target price on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Tuesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $277.37.

AeroVironment Stock Up 4.5%

AVAV stock opened at $172.44 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 5.51, a quick ratio of 4.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. AeroVironment has a twelve month low of $135.20 and a twelve month high of $417.86. The company’s 50 day moving average is $175.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $224.09. The stock has a market cap of $8.73 billion, a P/E ratio of -46.86, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.40.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, June 29th. The aerospace company reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.37. AeroVironment had a negative net margin of 9.00% and a positive return on equity of 3.72%. The company had revenue of $641.62 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $555.97 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.61 EPS. AeroVironment’s revenue for the quarter was up 133.3% on a year-over-year basis. AeroVironment has set its FY 2027 guidance at 3.020-3.340 EPS. Research analysts expect that AeroVironment will post 3.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Stephen F. Page sold 250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.41, for a total value of $43,602.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 49,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,546,264.41. This represents a 0.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 750 shares of company stock worth $133,502. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AeroVironment

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. United Services Automobile Association bought a new stake in shares of AeroVironment in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $225,000. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. bought a new position in AeroVironment during the second quarter worth $285,000. American Century Companies Inc. acquired a new position in AeroVironment in the second quarter worth $633,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in AeroVironment by 5,200.0% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 159 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in AeroVironment by 0.4% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 24,188 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $6,892,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. 86.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting AeroVironment

Here are the key news stories impacting AeroVironment this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AeroVironment won a $500 million U.S. Department of Defense counter-drone contract, reinforcing the company’s role in military modernization and providing another meaningful growth catalyst. AeroVironment Stock Rises On $500 Million Counter-Drone Contract
• Positive Sentiment: The company reported fiscal Q4 EPS of $1.84 versus $1.47 expected and revenue of $641.6 million versus $556.0 million expected, a sharp year-over-year jump that signals accelerating demand. AeroVironment (AVAV) Shares Skyrocket, What You Need To Know
• Positive Sentiment: Management highlighted a record roughly $1.2 billion funded backlog and strong growth in autonomous systems, which supports future revenue visibility and helped fuel bullish analyst commentary. AeroVironment shares jump on strong earnings beat, record backlog and Pentagon spending tailwinds
• Neutral Sentiment: Wedbush initiated coverage on AeroVironment and Kratos with an Outperform view, adding to the positive tone around defense-tech names. AeroVironment, Kratos gain as Wedbush initiates at Outperform
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms announced or repeated securities class-action deadlines tied to prior disclosures, which could add headline risk and pressure sentiment even as the operating story improves. Deadline Alert: AeroVironment, Inc. (AVAV) Shareholders Who Lost Money Urged To Contact Glancy Prongay Wolke & Rotter LLP About Securities Fraud Lawsuit

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.