Alyeska Investment Group L.P. Grows Stock Holdings in AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV

Key Points

• Alyeska Investment Group L.P. has increased its holdings in AeroVironment, Inc. by 48.2%, now owning 902,814 shares valued at $107.61 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Flputnam Investment Management Co. and Vident Advisory LLC, have also raised their stakes in AeroVironment during the 1st quarter.
• AeroVironment reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the last quarter, surpassing estimates and indicating a 39.6% year-over-year revenue increase.

Alyeska Investment Group L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV - Free Report) by 48.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 902,814 shares of the aerospace company's stock after buying an additional 293,553 shares during the quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. owned approximately 3.20% of AeroVironment worth $107,606,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVAV. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in AeroVironment by 281.6% during the first 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 during the period. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC grew its position in AeroVironment by 41.0% during the first 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 during the period. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in AeroVironment during the first quarter valued at approximately $23,501,000. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in AeroVironment during the first quarter valued at approximately $16,802,000. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in AeroVironment during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $17,158,000. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVAV has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of AeroVironment from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Raymond James Financial set a $225.00 price target on shares of AeroVironment and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of AeroVironment from $210.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. William Blair initiated coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Sunday, June 29th. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Finally, Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Monday, August 4th. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and fifteen have issued a Buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AeroVironment presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $292.33.

AeroVironment Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AVAV traded down $11.47 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $226.76. 1,220,595 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 673,571. The company has a current ratio of 3.52, a quick ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The business's fifty day moving average is $254.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $189.54. AeroVironment, Inc. has a one year low of $102.25 and a one year high of $295.90. The stock has a market cap of $11.32 billion, a PE ratio of 146.30 and a beta of 1.02.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, June 24th. The aerospace company reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.20. AeroVironment had a net margin of 5.32% and a return on equity of 10.68%. The firm had revenue of $275.05 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $242.69 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.43 earnings per share. AeroVironment's revenue for the quarter was up 39.6% on a year-over-year basis. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.800-3.000 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AeroVironment

In related news, CEO Wahid Nawabi sold 17,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 122,233 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,153,390.65. This represents a 12.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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.