AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Sets New 52-Week Low - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• AeroVironment shares fell to a new 52-week low of $131.50, below the 50-day and 200-day moving averages of $156.40 and $167.18, respectively.
• Despite recent analyst downgrades and target-price cuts, Wall Street maintains a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $228.80.
• The company beat quarterly expectations with $0.59 in adjusted earnings per share versus a $0.22 estimate, while revenue rose 5.7% year over year to $480.49 million; insiders have nevertheless sold shares in recent months.

AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday. The stock traded as low as $131.50 and last traded at $131.51, with a volume of 1,769,207 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $137.11.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on AVAV shares. Weiss Ratings downgraded AeroVironment from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a research note on Friday, September 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered AeroVironment from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $210.00 to $180.00 in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Rothschild & Co Redburn assumed coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $165.00 price objective on the stock. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of AeroVironment from $248.00 to $235.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised shares of AeroVironment from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $210.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AeroVironment has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $228.80.

AeroVironment Stock Performance

The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $156.40 and its 200-day simple moving average is $167.18. The stock has a market cap of $6.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -56.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 4.26, a quick ratio of 3.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, September 9th. The aerospace company reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.37. AeroVironment had a positive return on equity of 4.04% and a negative net margin of 5.77%. The firm had revenue of $480.49 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $451.95 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.32 EPS. The company's revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. AeroVironment has set its FY 2027 guidance at 3.020-3.340 EPS. Analysts forecast that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Stephen Page sold 250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.27, for a total transaction of $38,067.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 48,253 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,347,484.31. The trade was a 0.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Brian Shackley sold 205 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.86, for a total value of $41,381.30. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 7,888 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,592,271.68. This trade represents a 2.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 805 shares of company stock worth $142,671. Company insiders own 0.79% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. GK Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in AeroVironment in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $49,000. WoodTrust Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 58.9% during the third quarter. WoodTrust Financial Corp now owns 2,780 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $395,000 after buying an additional 1,030 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 52.5% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,075 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $153,000 after buying an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 82.1% during the third quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 652 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $93,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vista Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 0.9% during the third quarter. Vista Investment Partners LLC now owns 16,594 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $2,360,000 after buying an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.38% of the company's stock.

About AeroVironment

AeroVironment, Inc is a defense technology company that develops and supplies autonomous systems, uncrewed aircraft, loitering munitions and counter-uncrewed-aircraft systems. Its portfolio includes small unmanned aircraft systems such as Raven, Puma and Wasp, as well as larger platforms including JUMP 20 and Quantix Recon.

The company is also known for its Switchblade family of loitering munitions, which combine surveillance, target identification and precision strike capabilities. AeroVironment provides related ground control systems, sensors, software, communications equipment, training and support services for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions.

Founded in 1971 by aerospace engineer Paul B.

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