Aveanna Healthcare (NASDAQ:AVAH) Trading 5.5% Higher – What’s Next?

Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAH) traded up 5.5% on Friday . The company traded as high as $9.53 and last traded at $9.5790. 199,895 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 1,552,224 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.08.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AVAH. Stephens raised Aveanna Healthcare from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $10.00 to $11.00 in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada upgraded Aveanna Healthcare from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $10.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Aveanna Healthcare in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Aveanna Healthcare from $9.00 to $9.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Aveanna Healthcare from $9.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $10.78.

Aveanna Healthcare Trading Up 4.1%

The stock has a market capitalization of $2.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.35. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $8.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $7.67.

Aveanna Healthcare (NASDAQ:AVAH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The company reported $0.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.13 by $0.05. Aveanna Healthcare had a return on equity of 124.68% and a net margin of 10.37%.The firm had revenue of $647.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $613.22 million. Aveanna Healthcare’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc. will post 0.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Paul R. Vigano sold 7,000,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.24, for a total transaction of $43,680,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 252,899 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,578,089.76. This represents a 96.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Patrick A. Cunningham sold 125,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.59, for a total transaction of $948,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 212,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,614,810.45. This trade represents a 37.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 31,305,664 shares of company stock worth $215,555,910. Insiders own 5.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aveanna Healthcare

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its position in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 252.4% in the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 3,351 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 2,400 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Aveanna Healthcare during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $43,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in Aveanna Healthcare during the 1st quarter worth approximately $53,000. Oxford Asset Management LLP acquired a new position in Aveanna Healthcare during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $64,000. Finally, Bayesian Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Aveanna Healthcare during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $85,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.96% of the company’s stock.

Aveanna Healthcare Company Profile

Aveanna Healthcare, Inc (NASDAQ: AVAH) is a national provider of in-home health care services, specializing in pediatric skilled nursing, therapy, and related support for medically complex and chronically ill children. The company delivers a range of clinical and therapeutic solutions designed to enable patients to receive care in the comfort of their own homes, reducing the need for hospital stays and long-term institutional care. Aveanna’s offerings include registered nursing, physical, occupational and speech therapy, behavioral health counseling, and durable medical equipment coordination.

In addition to pediatric home health services, Aveanna operates adult home health and personal care support programs, assisting elderly and disabled adults with daily living activities, medication management, and rehabilitation therapies.