AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Trading Down 4.5% – Should You Sell?

AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) fell 4.5% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $288.29 and last traded at $293.22. 1,445,028 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 23% from the average session volume of 1,879,758 shares. The stock had previously closed at $306.94.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AVAV has been the subject of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on AeroVironment from $267.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on AeroVironment from $295.00 to $389.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $415.00 target price on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Monday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $390.00 price objective on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $378.06.

AeroVironment Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 4.29 and a current ratio of 5.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.64 billion, a P/E ratio of -234.58, a PEG ratio of 4.58 and a beta of 1.16. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $288.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $294.48.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 9th. The aerospace company reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.43). AeroVironment had a negative net margin of 5.08% and a positive return on equity of 3.42%. The business had revenue of $472.51 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $466.16 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.47 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 150.7% on a year-over-year basis. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.400-3.550 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at AeroVironment

In other AeroVironment news, CAO Brian Charles Shackley sold 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.92, for a total value of $50,184.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,504,014.48. The trade was a 3.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Stephen F. Page sold 1,000 shares of AeroVironment stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $377.62, for a total value of $377,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 51,001 shares in the company, valued at $19,258,997.62. This represents a 1.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 3,223 shares of company stock valued at $1,092,503. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AeroVironment

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AVAV. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in AeroVironment by 60.0% during the 3rd quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 80 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new position in AeroVironment in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Tema Etfs LLC acquired a new position in AeroVironment during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. ORG Partners LLC increased its stake in AeroVironment by 296.0% during the 2nd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 99 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. Finally, RMG Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of AeroVironment in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.38% of the company’s stock.

AeroVironment Company Profile

AeroVironment, Inc (NASDAQ:AVAV) is a technology company specializing in unmanned aerial systems (UAS), tactical missiles and precision loitering munitions, electric vehicle charging and scalable energy systems. Headquartered in Monrovia, California, the company develops solutions for defense, public safety and commercial markets. Their offerings include small UAS for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, as well as advanced weapons systems designed to meet the needs of modern military operations.

The company’s unmanned aerial systems portfolio features platforms such as the Raven, Puma and Switchblade series, which are deployed by the U.S.