AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV Position Boosted by ARK Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• ARK Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in AeroVironment by 10.5% during the second quarter, owning approximately 310,760 shares worth $88.55 million.
• AeroVironment's stock saw a rise of 3.6%, with current shares trading at $377.18, after fluctuating between a low of $102.25 and a high of $417.86 over the past year.
• Several institutional investors reported significant stake increases, with Alyeska Investment Group L.P. and Ameriprise Financial Inc. growing their stakes by 48.2% and 281.6%, respectively.

ARK Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV - Free Report) by 10.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 310,760 shares of the aerospace company's stock after acquiring an additional 29,437 shares during the quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.63% of AeroVironment worth $88,551,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. grew its stake in AeroVironment by 48.2% during the 1st quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 902,814 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $107,606,000 after acquiring an additional 293,553 shares in the last quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC grew its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 41.0% in the 1st quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 763,489 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $91,000,000 after buying an additional 221,948 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 7.8% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 456,486 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $54,409,000 after buying an additional 33,169 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 281.6% in the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 430,307 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $51,288,000 after buying an additional 317,530 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 265,102 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $31,598,000 after buying an additional 1,029 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.38% of the company's stock.

AeroVironment Stock Up 3.6%

Shares of AVAV stock opened at $377.18 on Wednesday. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 12 month low of $102.25 and a 12 month high of $417.86. The firm has a market cap of $18.83 billion, a PE ratio of -589.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.17 and a beta of 0.99. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $294.63 and a 200-day moving average of $233.01. The company has a quick ratio of 5.12, a current ratio of 5.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 28th. The aerospace company reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of $132.62 million during the quarter. AeroVironment had a positive return on equity of 4.67% and a negative net margin of 4.14%. On average, equities analysts predict that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVAV has been the subject of several recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on AeroVironment from $295.00 to $389.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. Zacks Research cut AeroVironment from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on AeroVironment from $320.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on AeroVironment from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, Wedbush upgraded AeroVironment to an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AeroVironment currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $356.07.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Trace E. Stevenson sold 1,717 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $381.00, for a total value of $654,177.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 4,907 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,869,567. This represents a 25.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 998 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $399.74, for a total value of $398,940.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 19,324 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,724,575.76. The trade was a 4.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.81% of the company's stock.

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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