Virtu Financial LLC Purchases 4,058 Shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)

Key Points

• Virtu Financial LLC increased its stake in AeroVironment, Inc. by 221.1%, acquiring 4,058 shares and bringing its total holdings to 5,893 shares valued at approximately $702,000.
• In related news, CEO Wahid Nawabi sold 17,300 shares at an average price of $263.05, reducing his ownership by 12.40% to 122,233 shares.
• AeroVironment reported a 39.6% year-over-year increase in revenue for the last quarter, reaching $275.05 million, and exceeded analysts' earnings expectations with $1.61 EPS.

Virtu Financial LLC lifted its holdings in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV - Free Report) by 221.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,893 shares of the aerospace company's stock after buying an additional 4,058 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC's holdings in AeroVironment were worth $702,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in AeroVironment by 63.8% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,898 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,215,000 after purchasing an additional 3,077 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in AeroVironment by 121.4% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 40,846 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $6,286,000 after acquiring an additional 22,393 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in AeroVironment by 49.6% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 3,329 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $546,000 after acquiring an additional 1,104 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can raised its holdings in AeroVironment by 28.9% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 4,425 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $681,000 after acquiring an additional 992 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in AeroVironment during the 4th quarter valued at $46,789,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.38% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at AeroVironment

In other news, CEO Wahid Nawabi sold 17,300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.27% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVAV has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Monday, August 4th. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Citizens Jmp initiated coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Monday, August 4th. They issued a "strong-buy" rating and a $325.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of AeroVironment from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. 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 report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $225.00 target price on AeroVironment and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $285.33.

AeroVironment Trading Down 1.2%

NASDAQ AVAV traded down $3.08 during trading on Friday, hitting $246.65. 670,967 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 912,985. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $243.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $183.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 3.52 and a quick ratio of 2.69. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 12-month low of $102.25 and a 12-month high of $295.90. The firm has a market cap of $12.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 159.13 and a beta of 0.99.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) last posted 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. The company had revenue of $275.05 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $242.69 million. AeroVironment had a net margin of 5.32% and a return on equity of 10.68%. AeroVironment's revenue for the quarter was up 39.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.43 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 EPS for the current year.

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.