Alyeska Investment Group L.P. Takes $93.76 Million Position in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)

Alyeska Investment Group L.P. bought a new stake in shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 609,261 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $93,759,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. owned 2.16% of AeroVironment as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in AeroVironment in the 4th quarter worth $46,789,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of AeroVironment during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,502,000. Baillie Gifford & Co. increased its holdings in AeroVironment by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 2,135,280 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $328,598,000 after acquiring an additional 183,887 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in AeroVironment by 415.7% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 198,975 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $30,620,000 after purchasing an additional 160,390 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stephens Investment Management Group LLC boosted its position in shares of AeroVironment by 40.0% in the fourth quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 541,541 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $83,338,000 after purchasing an additional 154,703 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.38% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at AeroVironment

In other AeroVironment news, CEO Wahid Nawabi sold 29,366 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.20, for a total value of $3,764,721.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 115,174 shares in the company, valued at $14,765,306.80. This represents a 20.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.27% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on AVAV. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of AeroVironment from $230.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Raymond James upgraded shares of AeroVironment from a "market perform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $200.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of AeroVironment from $220.00 to $146.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $202.00.

AeroVironment Stock Up 4.8 %

AVAV traded up $7.76 on Thursday, hitting $167.77. 274,562 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 411,268. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $135.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $164.75. The company has a current ratio of 4.61, a quick ratio of 3.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. AeroVironment, Inc. has a twelve month low of $102.25 and a twelve month high of $236.60. The company has a market cap of $4.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 96.42 and a beta of 0.80.

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.