M & L Capital Management Ltd Buys 4,800 Shares of AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV

Key Points

• M & L Capital Management Ltd increased its stake in AeroVironment, Inc. by 342.9% by acquiring 4,800 additional shares, bringing their total to 6,200 shares, valued at $1.77 million.
• Several hedge funds, including Ameriprise Financial Inc. and Alyeska Investment Group L.P., also significantly boosted their positions in AeroVironment, indicating strong institutional interest, with 86.38% of the stock currently held by institutional investors.
• AeroVironment received positive ratings from various brokerages, with one claiming a target price of $240.00, and has an average price target of $292.33 according to MarketBeat.com.

M & L Capital Management Ltd lifted its stake in shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV - Free Report) by 342.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,200 shares of the aerospace company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,800 shares during the quarter. AeroVironment makes up 0.4% of M & L Capital Management Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. M & L Capital Management Ltd's holdings in AeroVironment were worth $1,767,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AVAV. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of AeroVironment by 281.6% during the first quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 430,307 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $51,288,000 after acquiring an additional 317,530 shares during the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. increased its holdings in AeroVironment by 48.2% in the first quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 902,814 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $107,606,000 after purchasing an additional 293,553 shares in the last quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC increased its holdings in AeroVironment by 41.0% in the first quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 763,489 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $91,000,000 after purchasing an additional 221,948 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in AeroVironment in the first quarter worth approximately $23,501,000. Finally, Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in AeroVironment in the first quarter worth approximately $16,802,000. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AVAV. Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on AeroVironment in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $240.00 target price for the company. KeyCorp began coverage on AeroVironment in a report on Sunday, June 29th. They issued an "overweight" rating for the company. Zacks Research upgraded AeroVironment from a "strong sell" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 25th. Wall Street Zen upgraded AeroVironment from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, June 22nd. Finally, William Blair began coverage on AeroVironment in a research note on Sunday, June 29th. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and fifteen have issued a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, AeroVironment presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $292.33.

AeroVironment Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:AVAV opened at $243.00 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $12.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -379.68 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a quick ratio of 2.69, a current ratio of 5.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 12-month low of $102.25 and a 12-month high of $295.90. The business's 50 day moving average is $251.76 and its 200 day moving average is $193.23.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, September 9th. The aerospace company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $454.68 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $446.16 million. AeroVironment had a negative net margin of 4.14% and a positive return on equity of 4.67%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 140.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.89 EPS. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.600-3.70 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Wahid Nawabi sold 17,300 shares of AeroVironment stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.05, for a total transaction of $4,550,765.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 122,233 shares of the company's stock, valued at $32,153,390.65. The trade was a 12.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.

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