Aveanna Healthcare (NASDAQ:AVAH) Stock Price Up 5.5% After Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Aveanna Healthcare shares rose 5.5% after Royal Bank of Canada raised its price target from $10 to $16 and maintained an “outperform” rating.
• Analyst sentiment is generally positive, with the stock carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $12.44; Aveanna also exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue estimates.
• Insiders sold substantial holdings—more than 31.1 million shares worth approximately $214.6 million over the past quarter—while institutional investors own nearly 88% of the company.

Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAH - Get Free Report)'s stock price was up 5.5% during mid-day trading on Monday after Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on the stock from $10.00 to $16.00. Royal Bank Of Canada currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Aveanna Healthcare traded as high as $13.85 and last traded at $13.8850. Approximately 511,565 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 71% from the average daily volume of 1,773,346 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.16.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Aveanna Healthcare in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Aveanna Healthcare from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Barclays raised their price objective on Aveanna Healthcare from $9.00 to $9.50 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Aveanna Healthcare from $9.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Aveanna Healthcare from $8.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $12.44.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder J.H. Whitney Equity Partners V sold 2,419,035 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.01, for a total transaction of $19,376,470.35. Following the sale, the insider owned 10,112,123 shares of the company's stock, valued at $80,998,105.23. This trade represents a 19.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Robert M. Williams, Jr. sold 3,000,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.01, for a total value of $24,030,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 190,130 shares in the company, valued at $1,522,941.30. This represents a 94.04% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 31,180,664 shares of company stock valued at $214,607,160. 5.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AVAH. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Aveanna Healthcare during the 2nd quarter worth about $63,504,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 38.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,577,010 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,564,000 after buying an additional 1,535,351 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 1,007.1% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,114,717 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,107,000 after buying an additional 1,014,030 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Aveanna Healthcare during the second quarter worth about $7,881,000. Finally, Nuveen LLC lifted its stake in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 135.9% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 1,571,308 shares of the company's stock worth $12,838,000 after acquiring an additional 905,316 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.96% of the company's stock.

Aveanna Healthcare Price Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average of $9.58 and a 200 day moving average of $7.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.30, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.47, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.16.

Aveanna Healthcare (NASDAQ:AVAH - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.17 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $670.48 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $638.61 million. Aveanna Healthcare had a net margin of 10.56% and a return on equity of 80.70%. Sell-side analysts predict that Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc. will post 0.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Aveanna Healthcare Company Profile

Aveanna Healthcare, Inc NASDAQ: AVAH is a national provider of in-home health care services, specializing in pediatric skilled nursing, therapy, and related support for medically complex and chronically ill children. The company delivers a range of clinical and therapeutic solutions designed to enable patients to receive care in the comfort of their own homes, reducing the need for hospital stays and long-term institutional care. Aveanna's offerings include registered nursing, physical, occupational and speech therapy, behavioral health counseling, and durable medical equipment coordination.

In addition to pediatric home health services, Aveanna operates adult home health and personal care support programs, assisting elderly and disabled adults with daily living activities, medication management, and rehabilitation therapies.

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