AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Shares Up 2.3% – Still a Buy?

AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)’s stock price shot up 2.3% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $159.80 and last traded at $156.99. Approximately 2,488,812 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 47% from the average session volume of 1,692,632 shares. The stock had previously closed at $153.40.

AeroVironment News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting AeroVironment this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AeroVironment subsidiary BlueHalo received a nearly $100 million U.S. Air Force space contract, providing a meaningful new award and reinforcing demand for the company’s space and defense technologies. A $100 Million Reason to Buy AVAV Stock
• Positive Sentiment: The company also won a reported $465 million Army high-energy laser contract. The award highlights AeroVironment’s exposure to expanding military demand for laser weapons, counter-drone systems and other advanced defense technologies. 3 Defense Stocks Riding the High-Energy Laser Boom
• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs analyst Noah Poponak reiterated a Buy rating and maintained a $326 price target, citing strong growth visibility and upcoming program catalysts. AeroVironment Buy Rating Reiterated
• Positive Sentiment: A strategic collaboration with Nominal will provide test and operations data infrastructure for AeroVironment’s defense hardware programs, potentially helping the company scale production and accelerate development. Nominal Partners with AeroVironment
• Positive Sentiment: ARK Invest added 29,016 AVAV shares, while the company’s record backlog and recent defense awards strengthened the perceived long-term growth story. ARK Invest Adds AeroVironment Shares
• Neutral Sentiment: AeroVironment recently reported quarterly revenue above expectations and earnings of $0.59 per share versus a $0.22 consensus estimate. However, the stock remains well below its 52-week high, and valuation and execution risks remain significant.
• Negative Sentiment: Berger Montague is investigating AeroVironment’s board over possible fiduciary-duty breaches related to allegedly undisclosed competition for a Space Force communications program. The investigation is preliminary, but it could create legal, reputational and shareholder uncertainty. Berger Montague Investigation

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on AVAV. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on AeroVironment from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. Wedbush initiated coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of AeroVironment from $225.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $247.79.

AeroVironment Trading Up 2.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 3.33 and a current ratio of 4.26. The firm has a market cap of $7.98 billion, a PE ratio of -67.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.06 and a beta of 1.41. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $156.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $177.43.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 9th. The aerospace company reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.37. The firm had revenue of $480.49 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $451.95 million. AeroVironment had a positive return on equity of 4.04% and a negative net margin of 5.77%.The company’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.32 EPS. AeroVironment has set its FY 2027 guidance at 3.020-3.340 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.22 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at AeroVironment

In other news, Director Stephen F. Page sold 250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.98, for a total value of $47,995.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 48,503 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,311,605.94. This trade represents a 0.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Brian Shackley sold 205 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.86, for a total transaction of $41,381.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 7,888 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,592,271.68. This trade represents a 2.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AeroVironment

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AVAV. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of AeroVironment during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in AeroVironment in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new position in AeroVironment during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. raised its stake in AeroVironment by 90.0% in the 4th quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 133 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Toth Financial Advisory Corp purchased a new position in shares of AeroVironment in the second quarter worth about $33,000. Institutional investors own 86.38% of the company’s stock.

AeroVironment Company Profile

AeroVironment, Inc is a defense technology company that develops and produces unmanned aircraft systems, loitering munitions, counter-unmanned aircraft systems and related robotic technologies. Its products are designed for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, precision strike, force protection and tactical communications applications.

The company’s portfolio includes the Raven, Puma and Wasp small unmanned aircraft systems; the JUMP 20 vertical takeoff and landing aircraft; and the Switchblade family of loitering munitions.