AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) CEO Wahid Nawabi Sells 17,300 Shares

AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) CEO Wahid Nawabi sold 17,300 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.05, for a total transaction of $4,550,765.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 122,233 shares of the company's stock, valued at $32,153,390.65. This trade represents a 12.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

AeroVironment Price Performance

AeroVironment stock traded up $8.70 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $277.62. 883,246 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 599,870. The stock has a market cap of $13.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 178.63 and a beta of 0.96. AeroVironment, Inc. has a one year low of $102.25 and a one year high of $295.90. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $203.19 and a 200-day moving average price of $168.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.69 and a current ratio of 3.52.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 24th. The aerospace company reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $275.05 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $242.69 million. AeroVironment had a net margin of 5.32% and a return on equity of 10.68%. The business's revenue was up 39.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.43 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on AVAV shares. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of AeroVironment from $146.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, June 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Monday, June 30th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $301.00 price objective for the company. Wedbush upgraded shares of AeroVironment to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. William Blair assumed coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Sunday, June 29th. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus assumed coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $240.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AeroVironment currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $268.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new position in AeroVironment during the 4th quarter valued at $93,759,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in AeroVironment by 281.6% during the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 430,307 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $51,288,000 after purchasing an additional 317,530 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in AeroVironment during the 4th quarter valued at $46,789,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in AeroVironment during the 4th quarter valued at $37,502,000. Finally, Stephens Investment Management Group LLC increased its position in AeroVironment by 41.0% during the 1st quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 763,489 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $91,000,000 after purchasing an additional 221,948 shares during the period. 86.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.