Granahan Investment Management LLC Invests $7.46 Million in AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV

Granahan Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 40,736 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,457,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AVAV. Tema Etfs LLC bought a new position in AeroVironment in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in AeroVironment during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. bought a new stake in AeroVironment during the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its position in AeroVironment by 90.0% in the fourth quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 133 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. increased its position in AeroVironment by 73.8% in the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 139 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AVAV. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price target on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of AeroVironment from $305.00 to $229.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Clear Str raised shares of AeroVironment to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of AeroVironment from $315.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $266.68.

Key Stories Impacting AeroVironment

Here are the key news stories impacting AeroVironment this week:

• Neutral Sentiment: Several law firms reiterated the approaching July 27 lead-plaintiff deadline in the AVAV securities class action, keeping AeroVironment in the news and highlighting ongoing legal overhang. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: The company also saw another round of short-interest commentary, but the filing reported zero shares short, so it does not appear to add meaningful new pressure. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: AeroVironment recently scored a new Army contract, and investors have also been encouraged by strong defense-program momentum, which supports the long-term revenue outlook even as the stock trades lower near term. Article Title

AeroVironment Stock Performance

AVAV opened at $149.51 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -40.63, a PEG ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a fifty day moving average of $166.78 and a 200 day moving average of $213.45. AeroVironment, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $135.20 and a fifty-two week high of $417.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 3.59 and a current ratio of 4.30.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, June 29th. The aerospace company reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.37. The company had revenue of $641.62 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $555.97 million. AeroVironment had a negative net margin of 9.00% and a positive return on equity of 3.71%. AeroVironment’s revenue for the quarter was up 133.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.61 EPS. AeroVironment has set its FY 2027 guidance at 3.020-3.340 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AeroVironment

In other news, Director Stephen F. Page sold 250 shares of AeroVironment stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.41, for a total value of $43,602.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 49,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,546,264.41. The trade was a 0.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

AeroVironment 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.