BTIG Research Issues Pessimistic Forecast for AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Stock Price

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) had its price target lowered by research analysts at BTIG Research from $415.00 to $330.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the aerospace company’s stock. BTIG Research’s price target points to a potential upside of 59.37% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Monday, January 12th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of AeroVironment from $391.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of AeroVironment from $486.00 to $429.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 12th. KeyCorp reduced their target price on shares of AeroVironment from $330.00 to $295.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price target on shares of AeroVironment from $400.00 to $330.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $318.78.

AeroVironment Price Performance

AeroVironment stock opened at $207.07 on Thursday. AeroVironment has a 12 month low of $102.25 and a 12 month high of $417.86. The company has a current ratio of 5.51, a quick ratio of 4.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $281.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $291.88. The company has a market cap of $10.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -47.71, a PEG ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 1.26.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 10th. The aerospace company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $408.05 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $487.94 million. AeroVironment had a positive return on equity of 3.26% and a negative net margin of 13.93%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 143.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.30 earnings per share. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.750-3.100 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that AeroVironment will post 3.38 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 999 shares of the company’s 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 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. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Brian Charles Shackley sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 30th. The stock was 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 owned 5,994 shares in the company, valued at $1,504,014.48. This represents a 3.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,474 shares of company stock worth $1,390,404. 0.81% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Groupama Asset Managment purchased a new position in AeroVironment during the third quarter worth about $314,890,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 14.3% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,478,114 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $991,089,000 after acquiring an additional 433,830 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of AeroVironment during the 4th quarter valued at about $94,655,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its position in shares of AeroVironment by 24,798.7% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 315,716 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $99,416,000 after acquiring an additional 314,448 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 75.6% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 609,019 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $173,540,000 after purchasing an additional 262,239 shares in the last quarter. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AeroVironment News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting AeroVironment this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Underlying demand/backlog: Q3 revenue rose ~143% YoY and the company still reports a multi‑hundred‑million to billion‑level backlog that supports longer‑term revenue — a constructive backdrop if execution and contract timing normalize. Q3 revenue and backlog discussion
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support remains: despite trimming targets, many firms (BTIG, Jefferies, Canaccord and others) kept Buy/Outperform ratings, signalling expectations of mid/long‑term upside if AeroVironment regains program visibility and scales production. Analyst note summary (Benzinga)
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings and guidance: Q3 results beat on some metrics (strong YoY revenue growth) but missed consensus on revenue and EPS; management set FY‑2026 EPS guidance of $2.75–$3.10, below street expectations — creates uncertainty but also sets clearer, more conservative targets. Q3 miss and guidance
• Neutral Sentiment: Price‑target downgrades but ratings mixed: several shops cut targets (KeyBanc, Canaccord, BTIG, Jefferies) while mostly keeping Buy/Outperform stances — implies recalibrated expectations rather than broad conviction shift. KeyCorp target cut Canaccord note
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest reporting in feeds shows anomalous/zero values (likely data error); no clear short squeeze signal from those items. Short interest entries (data anomaly)
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction: shares plunged after the Q3 miss and the outlook cut as investors punished reduced near‑term visibility and growth assumptions. Shares fall on Q3 miss
• Negative Sentiment: Contract risk: reports of SCAR/Space Force contract termination or timing disruptions remove material unfunded backlog (reports cite ~$1.4–1.7B), increasing near‑term revenue uncertainty and pressuring sentiment. SCAR contract and backlog risk
• Negative Sentiment: Financing/leverage risk: disclosure of a $727M notes issuance tightens covenants and raises leverage/liquidity risk — an added structural concern for investors already focused on visibility. Notes issuance risk
• Negative Sentiment: Headline/legal/insider risk: Pomerantz launched an investor probe and the CFO disclosed small share sales — both increase short‑term headline risk and may amplify volatility. Pomerantz investigation CFO Form 4

About AeroVironment

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.