StockNews.com Initiates Coverage on AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV)

Equities research analysts at StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV – Get Rating) in a note issued to investors on Thursday. The firm set a “hold” rating on the aerospace company’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on AVAV. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on AeroVironment from $106.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Tuesday, March 7th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on AeroVironment from $105.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 7th. Finally, Raymond James increased their price objective on AeroVironment from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $106.50.

AeroVironment Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ AVAV opened at $90.39 on Thursday. AeroVironment has a one year low of $70.08 and a one year high of $114.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 3.36 and a quick ratio of 2.28. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $88.41 and its 200-day moving average price is $87.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.28 billion, a PE ratio of -258.26 and a beta of 0.60.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 6th. The aerospace company reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by ($0.01). AeroVironment had a negative net margin of 1.74% and a positive return on equity of 2.21%. The firm had revenue of $134.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $126.77 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.32 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 49.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that AeroVironment will post 1.27 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at AeroVironment

In related news, Director Stephen F. Page sold 5,089 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.47, for a total transaction of $450,223.83. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 34,837 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,082,029.39. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AeroVironment

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. lifted its holdings in AeroVironment by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 4,180,252 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $348,466,000 after buying an additional 221,652 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in AeroVironment by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,583,102 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $215,328,000 after buying an additional 80,680 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in AeroVironment by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,430,804 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $119,272,000 after buying an additional 16,440 shares during the period. Baillie Gifford & Co. lifted its holdings in AeroVironment by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 759,638 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $65,071,000 after buying an additional 34,794 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in AeroVironment by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 699,402 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $65,842,000 after buying an additional 6,509 shares during the period. 88.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About AeroVironment

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AeroVironment, Inc engages in the design, development, production, support and operation of unmanned aircraft systems and electric transportation solutions. The company was founded by Paul B. MacCready, Jr. in July 1971 and is headquartered in Arlington, VA.