Reviewing Astronics (OTCMKTS:ATROB) and AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV)

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) and Astronics (OTCMKTS:ATROB) are both mid-cap industrials companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, risk, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, valuation and profitability.

Risk and Volatility

AeroVironment has a beta of 1.42, suggesting that its share price is 42% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Astronics has a beta of 1.33, suggesting that its share price is 33% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for AeroVironment and Astronics, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
AeroVironment	1	5	19	2	2.81
Astronics	0	1	0	0	2.00

AeroVironment presently has a consensus target price of $223.86, indicating a potential upside of 85.25%. Given AeroVironment’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe AeroVironment is more favorable than Astronics.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

86.4% of AeroVironment shares are held by institutional investors. 0.8% of AeroVironment shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 16.0% of Astronics shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares AeroVironment and Astronics’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
AeroVironment	-5.77%	4.04%	3.13%
Astronics	14.21%	73.50%	16.59%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares AeroVironment and Astronics”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
AeroVironment	$1.98 billion	3.11	-$265.12 million	($2.34)	-51.64
Astronics	$862.13 million	2.95	$29.36 million	$3.04	19.46

Astronics has lower revenue, but higher earnings than AeroVironment. AeroVironment is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Astronics, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

AeroVironment beats Astronics on 8 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About AeroVironment

AeroVironment, Inc. develops uncrewed aircraft systems and other technology for defense, government and commercial customers. Its products include small drones used for reconnaissance and surveillance, as well as the Switchblade family of loitering munitions. The company also provides counter-drone systems, training, support and related services. Founded in 1971 by engineer and inventor Paul MacCready, AeroVironment has a history of developing aircraft and uncrewed systems. Its customers include U.S. government and military organizations, allied nations and commercial users.

About Astronics

Astronics Corporation develops and manufactures technologies for the aerospace, defense and other mission-critical markets. Its aerospace products include aircraft lighting and safety systems, electrical power generation and distribution equipment, cabin electronics, connectivity solutions and aircraft structures. The company also provides automated test systems and related equipment used by aerospace and defense organizations and other manufacturers. Astronics serves customers in North America and internationally, including commercial aviation, business aviation and military markets.