Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Acquires New Shares in AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV

Key Points

• Louisiana State Employees Retirement System disclosed a new position in AeroVironment, buying 9,200 shares valued at about $1.684 million in the first quarter.
• AeroVironment posted a strong quarter, with EPS of $1.84 versus $1.47 expected and revenue of $641.6 million versus $556.0 million expected, while revenue jumped 133.3% year over year.
• The company also secured a $500 million U.S. Department of Defense counter-drone contract and ended the period with a record $1.2 billion funded backlog, boosting confidence in future growth.

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 9,200 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $1,684,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of AVAV. Tema Etfs LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AeroVironment in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in AeroVironment during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new position in shares of AeroVironment in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. grew its stake in AeroVironment by 90.0% during the 4th quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 133 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Huntington National Bank increased its holdings in AeroVironment by 72.1% during the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 105 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.38% of the company's stock.

AeroVironment News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting AeroVironment this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AeroVironment won a $500 million U.S. Department of Defense counter-drone contract, reinforcing the company’s role in military modernization and providing another meaningful growth catalyst. AeroVironment Stock Rises On $500 Million Counter-Drone Contract
• Positive Sentiment: The company reported fiscal Q4 EPS of $1.84 versus $1.47 expected and revenue of $641.6 million versus $556.0 million expected, a sharp year-over-year jump that signals accelerating demand. AeroVironment (AVAV) Shares Skyrocket, What You Need To Know
• Positive Sentiment: Management highlighted a record roughly $1.2 billion funded backlog and strong growth in autonomous systems, which supports future revenue visibility and helped fuel bullish analyst commentary. AeroVironment shares jump on strong earnings beat, record backlog and Pentagon spending tailwinds
• Neutral Sentiment: Wedbush initiated coverage on AeroVironment and Kratos with an Outperform view, adding to the positive tone around defense-tech names. AeroVironment, Kratos gain as Wedbush initiates at Outperform
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms announced or repeated securities class-action deadlines tied to prior disclosures, which could add headline risk and pressure sentiment even as the operating story improves. Deadline Alert: AeroVironment, Inc. (AVAV) Shareholders Who Lost Money Urged To Contact Glancy Prongay Wolke & Rotter LLP About Securities Fraud Lawsuit

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AeroVironment news, Director Stephen F. Page sold 250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.41, for a total value of $43,602.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 49,001 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,546,264.41. This trade represents a 0.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 750 shares of company stock valued at $133,502. 0.81% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on AVAV shares. Raymond James Financial raised AeroVironment from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Zacks Research raised AeroVironment from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on AeroVironment from $305.00 to $229.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and issued a $350.00 target price on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of AeroVironment from $260.00 to $235.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $277.37.

AeroVironment Trading Up 4.5%

Shares of AeroVironment stock opened at $172.44 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 5.51 and a quick ratio of 4.54. The company has a market capitalization of $8.73 billion, a P/E ratio of -46.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.40. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 1 year low of $135.20 and a 1 year high of $417.86. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $175.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $224.09.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, June 29th. The aerospace company reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.37. AeroVironment had a negative net margin of 9.00% and a positive return on equity of 3.72%. The firm had revenue of $641.62 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $555.97 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.61 earnings per share. AeroVironment's revenue was up 133.3% compared to the same quarter last year. AeroVironment has set its FY 2027 guidance at 3.020-3.340 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AeroVironment Company Profile

AeroVironment, Inc NASDAQ: AVAV is a technology company specializing in unmanned aerial systems (UAS), tactical missiles and precision loitering munitions, electric vehicle charging and scalable energy systems. Headquartered in Monrovia, California, the company develops solutions for defense, public safety and commercial markets. Their offerings include small UAS for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, as well as advanced weapons systems designed to meet the needs of modern military operations.

The company's unmanned aerial systems portfolio features platforms such as the Raven, Puma and Switchblade series, which are deployed by the U.S.

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