ARS Investment Partners LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV

ARS Investment Partners LLC cut its position in shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) by 6.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,621 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 195 shares during the period. ARS Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in AeroVironment were worth $747,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. ORG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in AeroVironment by 296.0% in the 2nd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 99 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. RMG Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AeroVironment during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in AeroVironment by 60.3% in the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 117 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. purchased a new position in AeroVironment in the second quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its position in AeroVironment by 21.5% in the second quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 237 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $68,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Trace E. Stevenson sold 1,717 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $381.00, for a total value of $654,177.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 4,907 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,869,567. This trade represents a 25.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 998 shares of AeroVironment stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $399.74, for a total transaction of $398,940.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 19,324 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,724,575.76. This represents a 4.91% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 3,228 shares of company stock valued at $1,223,157 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AVAV has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on AeroVironment from $267.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on AeroVironment in a research report on Tuesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $355.00 price objective for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of AeroVironment from $300.00 to $333.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. Citigroup reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of AeroVironment from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $356.00.

AeroVironment Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:AVAV opened at $280.95 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.03 billion, a PE ratio of -438.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.37 and a beta of 1.09. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 1 year low of $102.25 and a 1 year high of $417.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 5.96 and a quick ratio of 5.12. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $335.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $262.40.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 28th. The aerospace company reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter. AeroVironment had a negative net margin of 4.14% and a positive return on equity of 4.67%. The company had revenue of $132.62 million during the quarter. Analysts predict that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 EPS for the current year.

About AeroVironment

AeroVironment, Inc designs, develops, produces, delivers, and supports a portfolio of robotic systems and related services for government agencies and businesses in the United States and internationally. It operates through Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (SUAS), Tactical Missile System (TMS), Medium Unmanned Aircraft Systems (MUAS), and High Altitude Pseudo-Satellite Systems (HAPS) segments.