Aviat Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVNW) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Aviat Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVNW) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $34.50.

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AVNW. B. Riley Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $36.00 price target (up from $35.00) on shares of Aviat Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Lake Street Capital reissued a “buy” rating and set a $34.00 price objective on shares of Aviat Networks in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Roth Mkm decreased their target price on shares of Aviat Networks from $41.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Aviat Networks in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Aviat Networks from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Gary Croke sold 6,914 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.20, for a total transaction of $181,146.80. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 43,868 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,149,341.60. This trade represents a 13.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Pete A. Smith sold 17,086 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.33, for a total value of $449,874.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 358,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,445,808.51. This trade represents a 4.55% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 5.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AVNW. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Aviat Networks by 34.5% in the 3rd quarter. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC now owns 311,254 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $7,137,000 after purchasing an additional 79,774 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Aviat Networks by 157.8% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 144,922 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $3,485,000 after acquiring an additional 88,713 shares during the period. White Pine Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Aviat Networks during the second quarter valued at $676,000. First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Aviat Networks by 15.1% in the second quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 378,549 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $9,104,000 after acquiring an additional 49,642 shares during the period. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its position in Aviat Networks by 9.1% in the second quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 127,136 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $3,058,000 after purchasing an additional 10,651 shares during the last quarter. 78.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Aviat Networks Trading Down 0.4%

NASDAQ:AVNW opened at $25.04 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $323.02 million, a P/E ratio of 22.36 and a beta of 0.83. Aviat Networks has a 52 week low of $15.80 and a 52 week high of $27.02. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The company has a fifty day moving average of $22.93 and a 200 day moving average of $22.70.

Aviat Networks (NASDAQ:AVNW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The communications equipment provider reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $111.47 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.67 million. Aviat Networks had a return on equity of 10.71% and a net margin of 3.27%. On average, research analysts predict that Aviat Networks will post 0.5 earnings per share for the current year.

About Aviat Networks

Aviat Networks, Inc is a specialist in wireless transport solutions, designing, manufacturing and selling microwave networking products that enable the secure and reliable transmission of data, voice and video. The company’s offerings address mission-critical communications needs for a broad range of end markets, including telecommunications service providers, utilities, government agencies and enterprises. Its product portfolio spans high-capacity packet microwave radios, IP transport systems and network management software.

Aviat’s core product lines include the WTM series of packet microwave platforms, which deliver scalable throughput and advanced resilience features, and the Eclipse packet microwave systems, which combine broadband capacity with synchronization, security and quality-of-service capabilities.