AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Key Points

• AeroVironment's rating has been upgraded from a "strong sell" to a "strong-buy" by Zacks Research, indicating increased analyst confidence in the stock.
• The company's recent earnings report showed a 39.6% revenue increase year-over-year, with earnings per share surpassing estimates.
• Multiple analysts, including Raymond James and Robert W. Baird, have issued strong buy ratings and raised their price targets, contributing to an overall consensus rating of "Buy" with an average target price of $286.46.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a "strong sell" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

AVAV has been the topic of several other research reports. Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Sunday, June 29th. Raymond James Financial set a $225.00 price objective on AeroVironment and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on AeroVironment from $210.00 to $267.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Citizens Jmp began coverage on AeroVironment in a report on Monday, August 4th. They set a "strong-buy" rating and a $325.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, KeyCorp began coverage on AeroVironment in a report on Sunday, June 29th. They set an "overweight" rating on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $286.46.

AeroVironment Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of AVAV stock opened at $245.90 on Monday. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $249.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $186.14. The company has a market cap of $12.28 billion, a PE ratio of 158.65 and a beta of 0.99. AeroVironment has a fifty-two week low of $102.25 and a fifty-two week high of $295.90. 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 issued its earnings results on Tuesday, June 24th. The aerospace company reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 return on equity of 10.68% and a net margin of 5.32%.The company's revenue was up 39.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.43 EPS. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.800-3.000 EPS. Equities analysts predict that AeroVironment will post 3.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AeroVironment news, CEO Wahid Nawabi sold 17,300 shares of AeroVironment 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 122,233 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $32,153,390.65. The trade was a 12.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.81% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mariner LLC raised its position in shares of AeroVironment by 11.2% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 4,183 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $644,000 after acquiring an additional 422 shares in the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC raised its position in shares of AeroVironment by 105.6% in the 4th quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 9,038 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,391,000 after acquiring an additional 4,643 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp raised its position in shares of AeroVironment by 15.3% in the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 12,720 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,957,000 after acquiring an additional 1,690 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its position in shares of AeroVironment by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 3,993 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $621,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of AeroVironment by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 20,321 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $3,128,000 after acquiring an additional 1,498 shares in the last quarter. 86.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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