AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Trading 9.9% Higher After Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• AeroVironment's stock surged 9.9% following an upgrade from Jefferies Financial Group, which raised their price target from $320 to $365 and maintained a buy rating.
• Analysts overall have a consensus rating of "Buy" with a price target averaging $320.64, although one downgraded the stock from strong-buy to hold.
• The company's recent earnings report showed a 140% increase in revenue year-over-year but a miss in earnings per share compared to estimates.

AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) shares traded up 9.9% during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on the stock from $320.00 to $365.00. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. AeroVironment traded as high as $346.24 and last traded at $346.08. 2,046,433 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 132% from the average session volume of 880,487 shares. The stock had previously closed at $314.89.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Citizens Jmp started coverage on AeroVironment in a research report on Monday, August 4th. They set a "strong-buy" rating and a $325.00 price target for the company. Wedbush upgraded AeroVironment to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on AeroVironment from $267.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Zacks Research downgraded AeroVironment from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on AeroVironment in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $335.00 target price for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $320.64.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Wahid Nawabi sold 17,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.81% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AeroVironment

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. ORG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in AeroVironment by 296.0% in the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 99 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. RMG Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in AeroVironment in the second quarter worth $28,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in AeroVironment by 171.1% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 244 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in AeroVironment by 60.3% in the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 117 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Spirit of America Management Corp NY bought a new stake in AeroVironment in the first quarter worth $36,000. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AeroVironment Stock Up 9.9%

The firm has a market capitalization of $17.28 billion, a P/E ratio of -540.74, a P/E/G ratio of 5.24 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a quick ratio of 5.12, a current ratio of 5.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $259.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $206.10.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 9th. The aerospace company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $454.68 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $446.16 million. AeroVironment had a negative net margin of 4.14% and a positive return on equity of 4.67%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 140.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.89 earnings per share. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.600-3.70 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AeroVironment Company Profile

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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