JMP Securities Begins Coverage on AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV)

Key Points

• JMP Securities has initiated coverage of AeroVironment with a "market outperform" rating and a price target of $325.00, suggesting a potential upside of 24.97% from its previous closing price.
• Recent earnings reports indicate AeroVironment achieved a quarterly revenue of $275.05 million, exceeding the expected $242.69 million, and showing a 39.6% year-over-year increase.
• Institutional investors hold a significant stake in AeroVironment, with 86.38% of the company's stock owned by hedge funds and other large investors.

Research analysts at JMP Securities assumed coverage on shares of AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm set a "market outperform" rating and a $325.00 price target on the aerospace company's stock. JMP Securities' price target would indicate a potential upside of 24.97% from the company's previous close.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on AVAV. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on AeroVironment from $146.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. BTIG Research boosted their price objective on AeroVironment from $225.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on AeroVironment from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded AeroVironment from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, June 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $283.55.

AeroVironment Stock Down 2.8%

AVAV opened at $260.07 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $228.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $177.69. AeroVironment has a twelve month low of $102.25 and a twelve month high of $295.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.69 and a current ratio of 3.52. The firm has a market cap of $12.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 167.79 and a beta of 0.99.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 24th. The aerospace company reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $275.05 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $242.69 million. AeroVironment had a return on equity of 10.68% and a net margin of 5.32%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 39.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.43 EPS. Research analysts forecast that AeroVironment will post 3.38 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AeroVironment news, CEO Wahid Nawabi sold 17,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 122,233 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $32,153,390.65. The trade was a 12.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.27% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AeroVironment

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in AVAV. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. acquired a new position in shares of AeroVironment during the fourth quarter valued at $93,759,000. 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 purchasing an additional 317,530 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AeroVironment during the fourth quarter worth about $46,789,000. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC raised its position in AeroVironment by 41.0% in the 1st 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 last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in AeroVironment in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $23,501,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.38% of the company's stock.

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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