Congress Asset Management Co. Cuts Stock Position in AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV

Key Points

• Congress Asset Management Co. reduced its stake in AeroVironment, Inc. by 5.8% during the second quarter, leaving it with approximately 0.69% of the company's shares worth $97.5 million.
• Equities research analysts are optimistic about AeroVironment, with several ratings upgraded, including a price target increase from $300 to $330 by the Royal Bank of Canada, reflecting strong market potential.
• The company's recent earnings report showed a revenue increase of 140% year-over-year, though it missed EPS expectations by $0.02, reporting $0.32 per share against forecasts of $0.34.

Congress Asset Management Co. lessened its position in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV - Free Report) by 5.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 342,254 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 21,062 shares during the quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. owned approximately 0.69% of AeroVironment worth $97,525,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 21.5% in the 2nd quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 237 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Portside Wealth Group LLC increased its holdings in AeroVironment by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,741 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $208,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its holdings in AeroVironment by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,601 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC increased its holdings in AeroVironment by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 3,199 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $381,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in AeroVironment by 9.5% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,374 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $167,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.38% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on AVAV shares. JMP Securities restated a "market outperform" rating and set a $325.00 price target on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Monday, August 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on AeroVironment from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday. Citizens Jmp started coverage on AeroVironment in a report on Monday, August 4th. They set a "strong-buy" rating and a $325.00 price target on the stock. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. Finally, KeyCorp initiated coverage on AeroVironment in a report on Sunday, June 29th. They set an "overweight" rating on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $295.23.

AeroVironment Trading Up 0.1%

AVAV opened at $301.79 on Friday. AeroVironment, Inc. has a one year low of $102.25 and a one year high of $307.11. The company has a market cap of $15.07 billion, a P/E ratio of -471.54, a PEG ratio of 5.11 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 5.12 and a current ratio of 5.96. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $256.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $201.75.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 9th. The aerospace company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34 by ($0.02). AeroVironment had a negative net margin of 4.14% and a positive return on equity of 4.67%. The business had revenue of $454.68 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $446.16 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.89 EPS. The company's revenue was up 140.0% compared to the same quarter last year. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.600-3.70 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Wahid Nawabi sold 17,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.05, for a total value of $4,550,765.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 122,233 shares of the company's stock, valued at $32,153,390.65. This represents a 12.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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