Stephens Investment Management Group LLC Boosts Stake in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)

Stephens Investment Management Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV - Free Report) by 41.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 763,489 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 221,948 shares during the period. AeroVironment makes up approximately 1.3% of Stephens Investment Management Group LLC's holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC owned approximately 2.71% of AeroVironment worth $91,000,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Redwood Investments LLC raised its holdings in AeroVironment by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Redwood Investments LLC now owns 9,273 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,427,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC raised its holdings in AeroVironment by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,741 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $208,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its holdings in AeroVironment by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,601 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $246,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC raised its holdings in AeroVironment by 120.2% in the 4th quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 185 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atria Investments Inc raised its holdings in AeroVironment by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 1,650 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $254,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AeroVironment Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AVAV traded up $26.23 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $263.80. The company had a trading volume of 4,244,777 shares, compared to its average volume of 583,774. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 3.52 and a quick ratio of 2.69. The company has a market cap of $13.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 170.19 and a beta of 0.96. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 12-month low of $102.25 and a 12-month high of $295.90. The company has a fifty day moving average of $196.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $166.33.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 24th. The aerospace company reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $275.05 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $242.69 million. AeroVironment had a return on equity of 10.68% and a net margin of 5.32%. AeroVironment's revenue was up 39.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.43 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on AVAV shares. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $240.00 price objective for the company. William Blair assumed coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Sunday, June 29th. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of AeroVironment from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, June 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of AeroVironment from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AeroVironment has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $265.22.

AeroVironment 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.