56,949 Shares in AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV Acquired by GW&K Investment Management LLC

GW&K Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 56,949 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,934,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.11% of AeroVironment as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AVAV. Mengis Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in AeroVironment in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $293,000. ARK Investment Management LLC grew its position in AeroVironment by 28.9% during the 3rd quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 400,457 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $126,100,000 after purchasing an additional 89,697 shares during the period. Montag A & Associates Inc. grew its position in AeroVironment by 18.8% during the 3rd quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 726 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $229,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the period. Cresset Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 19.7% during the 3rd quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 6,522 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,054,000 after purchasing an additional 1,072 shares during the period. Finally, Legato Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 62.2% during the 3rd quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 2,830 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $891,000 after purchasing an additional 1,085 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Brian Charles Shackley sold 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.92, for a total transaction of $50,184.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,504,014.48. This represents a 3.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Stephen F. Page sold 250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $75,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 50,001 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,000,300. The trade was a 0.50% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 4,589 shares of company stock valued at $1,428,910 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

AeroVironment Trading Up 4.2%

NASDAQ AVAV opened at $229.80 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 5.08 and a quick ratio of 4.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.47 billion, a P/E ratio of -183.84, a PEG ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 1.26. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $284.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $292.63. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 12 month low of $102.25 and a 12 month high of $417.86.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVAV has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group began coverage on AeroVironment in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $259.00 target price on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on AeroVironment from $486.00 to $429.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 12th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $415.00 target price on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Monday, January 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $320.00 target price for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of AeroVironment from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $348.33.

AeroVironment News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting AeroVironment this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AeroVironment won a $97.4 million U.S. Army contract, reinforcing near-term revenue visibility and supporting demand for Switchblade and other tactical systems. This award is a concrete sales driver ahead of the company’s upcoming quarter. Benzinga: Army Contract
• Positive Sentiment: Sector tailwinds: Market commentary highlights AeroVironment as a core beneficiary of rising defense budgets and the shift to unmanned systems, which can attract buyers rotating into defense names. MarketBeat: Unmanned Profits
• Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming catalysts and investor access: management will present at the J.P. Morgan Industrials Conference (March 18) and Q3 earnings are due imminently — both could move the stock materially depending on guidance and margin commentary. Yahoo: JP Morgan Presentation
• Neutral Sentiment: Corporate items with limited market impact: the company adopted a new executive deferred-compensation plan (administrative). TipRanks: Deferred Comp Plan
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short-interest data in these feeds appears inconsistent (shows zero), so short-covering is not a clear driver from the published figures.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks downgraded AVAV from “hold” to “strong sell,” signaling downgrade-driven selling pressure from momentum or quant strategies. Zacks
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple analysts have cut forecasts or price targets (Robert W. Baird, Piper Sandler, RBC), increasing downside risk from lower sell-side expectations. Baird note Piper Sandler note RBC note
• Negative Sentiment: A shareholder class-action probe by Pomerantz introduces litigation risk and potential headline-driven volatility for investors. PR Newswire: Pomerantz Investigation
• Negative Sentiment: Earnings uncertainty: previews from Seeking Alpha and other outlets warn of margin/cost headwinds and specific program risks (the “1.4B problem”), which could pressure the stock if guidance or margins disappoint. Seeking Alpha: Q4 Preview
• Negative Sentiment: Recent sell-off commentary highlights a sizable pullback ahead of earnings and the potential for further downside if macro or company-specific headlines worsen. Yahoo: Reassessing AVAV Yahoo: Falls More Steeply

About AeroVironment

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.