AeroVironment’s (AVAV) “Buy” Rating Reaffirmed at Needham & Company LLC

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV)‘s stock had its “buy” rating restated by equities research analysts at Needham & Company LLC in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $450.00 price objective on the aerospace company’s stock. Needham & Company LLC’s target price points to a potential upside of 53.47% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane began coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $355.00 price target for the company. Zacks Research raised AeroVironment from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $415.00 price target on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Monday. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group set a $400.00 price objective on AeroVironment in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $378.06.

AeroVironment Trading Down 4.5%

AeroVironment stock opened at $293.22 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $288.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $294.47. The company has a quick ratio of 4.29, a current ratio of 5.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. AeroVironment has a 12 month low of $102.25 and a 12 month high of $417.86. The stock has a market cap of $14.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -234.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.54 and a beta of 1.16.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 9th. The aerospace company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.43). The firm had revenue of $472.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.47 EPS. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.400-3.550 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that AeroVironment will post 3.38 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at AeroVironment

In other news, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 999 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $367.60, for a total transaction of $367,232.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 17,301 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,359,847.60. This represents a 5.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 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 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. This represents a 3.23% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 3,223 shares of company stock worth $1,092,503. Insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of AeroVironment

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVAV. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 60.0% in the 3rd quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 80 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. raised its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 100.0% during the third quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 80 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new position in AeroVironment in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. RMG Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in AeroVironment in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in AeroVironment during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. 86.38% of the stock is owned by 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.