AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Now Covered by Analysts at Canaccord Genuity Group

Key Points

• Canaccord Genuity Group has initiated coverage on AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV), providing a "buy" rating and a price target of $305.00, suggesting a potential upside of 24.77% from the stock's previous close.
• The consensus rating for AeroVironment's stock is currently at "Buy" with an average price target of $285.33 based on ratings from multiple analysts.
• AeroVironment's recent earnings report showed $1.61 earnings per share, exceeding analyst expectations of $1.41, and a revenue increase of 39.6% year-over-year.

Analysts at Canaccord Genuity Group began coverage on shares of AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) in a report issued on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm set a "buy" rating and a $305.00 price target on the aerospace company's stock. Canaccord Genuity Group's price objective suggests a potential upside of 22.13% from the company's previous close.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on AVAV. BTIG Research raised their price objective on shares of AeroVironment from $225.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Monday, June 30th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $301.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. They set a "buy" rating and a $240.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of AeroVironment from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, June 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Sunday, June 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $285.33.

AeroVironment Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:AVAV traded down $5.08 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $249.73. The stock had a trading volume of 626,011 shares, compared to its average volume of 836,645. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.69 and a current ratio of 3.52. The firm's 50 day moving average is $240.66 and its 200-day moving average is $182.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 161.12 and a beta of 0.99. AeroVironment has a 1 year low of $102.25 and a 1 year high of $295.90.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, June 24th. The aerospace company reported $1.61 EPS 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 net margin of 5.32% and a return on equity of 10.68%. The company's revenue was up 39.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.43 EPS. Research analysts predict that AeroVironment will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AeroVironment news, CEO Wahid Nawabi sold 17,300 shares of AeroVironment stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were 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 $32,153,390.65. The trade was a 12.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AVAV. ORG Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of AeroVironment by 296.0% during the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 99 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of AeroVironment by 120.2% during the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 185 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. RMG Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AeroVironment during the second quarter worth $28,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AeroVironment in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. 86.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.