Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust Has $28.96 Million Stock Holdings in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)

Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust increased its position in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) by 2.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 158,968 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,098 shares during the quarter. AeroVironment makes up 1.5% of Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust owned 0.57% of AeroVironment worth $28,958,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AeroVironment during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. bought a new position in AeroVironment in the first quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. acquired a new stake in AeroVironment during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of AeroVironment by 50.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 401 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $61,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Register Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of AeroVironment during the 1st quarter valued at $61,000. 86.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AeroVironment Trading Down 2.3 %

NASDAQ:AVAV opened at $179.47 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 3.56 and a quick ratio of 2.52. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $177.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $173.11. AeroVironment, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $104.67 and a fifty-two week high of $224.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.05 billion, a PE ratio of 80.84 and a beta of 0.50.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, September 4th. The aerospace company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $189.48 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $183.18 million. AeroVironment had a net margin of 8.32% and a return on equity of 10.89%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 24.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.00 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at AeroVironment

In other AeroVironment news, CEO Wahid Nawabi sold 9,867 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.23, for a total transaction of $1,669,792.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 99,892 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,904,723.16. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other AeroVironment news, CEO Wahid Nawabi sold 9,867 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.23, for a total value of $1,669,792.41. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 99,892 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,904,723.16. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 513 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.70, for a total transaction of $89,621.10. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 18,650 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,258,155. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,287 shares of company stock valued at $1,928,305. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Alembic Global Advisors upgraded AeroVironment from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $216.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Robert W. Baird upgraded AeroVironment from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $161.00 to $220.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on AeroVironment from $230.00 to $215.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Baird R W upgraded shares of AeroVironment from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, BTIG Research began coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $255.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $210.20.

AeroVironment Company Profile

AeroVironment, Inc designs, develops, produces, delivers, and supports a portfolio of robotic systems and related services for government agencies and businesses in the United States and internationally. It operates through Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (SUAS), Tactical Missile System (TMS), Medium Unmanned Aircraft Systems (MUAS), and High Altitude Pseudo-Satellite Systems (HAPS) segments.