Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Sells 19,454 Shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. decreased its position in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV - Free Report) by 82.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,128 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 19,454 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.'s holdings in AeroVironment were worth $633,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of AeroVironment during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Bfsg LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AeroVironment during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AeroVironment during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. purchased a new stake in AeroVironment in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI lifted its stake in AeroVironment by 44.1% in the 4th quarter. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI now owns 327 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.38% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVAV has been the topic of several research reports. Robert W. Baird restated a "neutral" rating and set a $161.00 price objective on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Friday, March 8th. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target 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, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $140.20.

AeroVironment Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of AVAV traded down $0.60 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $196.18. The stock had a trading volume of 185,718 shares, compared to its average volume of 332,559. The stock's 50 day moving average is $161.72 and its 200 day moving average is $140.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 4.66 and a quick ratio of 3.16. The firm has a market cap of $5.52 billion, a PE ratio of -45.52 and a beta of 0.44. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 1 year low of $88.24 and a 1 year high of $198.96.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AeroVironment news, SVP Melissa Ann Brown sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.77, for a total transaction of $176,770.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly 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 this hyperlink. In other AeroVironment news, VP Trace E. Stevenson sold 1,913 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.00, for a total transaction of $350,079.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,570 shares of the company's stock, valued at $470,310. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Melissa Ann Brown sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.77, for a total transaction of $176,770.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 12,339 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,181,165.03. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.

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