Stephens Investment Management Group LLC Has $162.80 Million Position in AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV

Stephens Investment Management Group LLC reduced its position in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) by 18.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 517,004 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 116,880 shares during the quarter. AeroVironment makes up about 2.1% of Stephens Investment Management Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its largest position. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC’s holdings in AeroVironment were worth $162,799,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AVAV. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in AeroVironment by 60.0% in the 3rd quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 80 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank boosted its position in AeroVironment by 0.6% during the second quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 8,023 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,286,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its position in AeroVironment by 60.3% during the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 117 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 1.7% in the second quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 2,885 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $822,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ORG Partners LLC raised its position in shares of AeroVironment by 48.5% in the third quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 147 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at AeroVironment

In other AeroVironment news, CAO Brian Charles Shackley sold 200 shares of AeroVironment 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 in the company, valued at $1,504,014.48. The trade was a 3.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 999 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $367.60, for a total transaction of $367,232.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 17,301 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,359,847.60. This represents a 5.46% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 3,223 shares of company stock valued at $1,092,503 over the last three months. 0.81% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AeroVironment Price Performance

NASDAQ:AVAV opened at $392.86 on Friday. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 52-week low of $102.25 and a 52-week high of $417.86. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $284.93 and a 200 day moving average of $289.82. 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 has a market capitalization of $19.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -314.29, a P/E/G ratio of 5.59 and a beta of 1.16.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, December 9th. The aerospace company reported $0.44 earnings per share 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 the consensus estimate 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 was up 150.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.47 earnings per share. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.400-3.550 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on AVAV. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of AeroVironment from $267.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on AeroVironment in a report on Tuesday, November 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $355.00 price target for the company. Citizens Jmp reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $390.00 price objective on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $375.41.

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.