AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) saw a significant decline in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 744,900 shares, a decline of 23.2% from the March 15th total of 969,700 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 343,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.2 days.

AeroVironment Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AVAV traded down $1.37 during trading on Friday, hitting $147.12. 239,160 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 323,217. The company has a market cap of $4.14 billion, a PE ratio of -34.13 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a current ratio of 4.66, a quick ratio of 3.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $141.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $129.06. AeroVironment has a 12-month low of $88.24 and a 12-month high of $184.61.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, March 4th. The aerospace company reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.30. AeroVironment had a positive return on equity of 13.93% and a negative net margin of 15.14%. The company had revenue of $186.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $170.62 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.33 earnings per share. AeroVironment's revenue was up 38.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that AeroVironment will post 2.8 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AeroVironment

In related news, SVP Melissa Ann Brown sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.77, for a total transaction of $176,770.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 12,339 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,181,165.03. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other AeroVironment news, VP Trace E. Stevenson sold 1,913 shares of AeroVironment stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.00, for a total value of $350,079.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,570 shares in the company, valued at approximately $470,310. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Melissa Ann Brown sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.77, for a total value of $176,770.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 12,339 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,181,165.03. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of AeroVironment

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AVAV. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AeroVironment in the first quarter valued at $26,000. Bfsg LLC purchased a new position in AeroVironment in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of AeroVironment during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AeroVironment during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of AeroVironment during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.38% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on AVAV. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Robert W. Baird reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $161.00 price target on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Friday, March 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of AeroVironment from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AeroVironment has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $140.20.

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.