AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Shares Down 5.9% – Here’s What Happened

AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)’s share price traded down 5.9% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $183.85 and last traded at $184.43. 867,457 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 54% from the average session volume of 1,905,540 shares. The stock had previously closed at $195.91.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AVAV. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on AeroVironment from $486.00 to $429.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price target on shares of AeroVironment from $335.00 to $315.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of AeroVironment from $259.00 to $236.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of AeroVironment from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Monday, January 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $318.78.

AeroVironment Price Performance

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $251.20 and a two-hundred day moving average of $289.85. The company has a current ratio of 5.51, a quick ratio of 4.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The company has a market capitalization of $9.21 billion, a PE ratio of -42.50, a PEG ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.26.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 10th. The aerospace company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by ($0.04). AeroVironment had a positive return on equity of 3.26% and a negative net margin of 13.93%.The company had revenue of $408.05 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $487.94 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.30 earnings per share. AeroVironment’s revenue for the quarter was up 143.4% on a year-over-year basis. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.750-3.100 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AeroVironment news, Director Stephen F. Page sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $377.62, for a total value of $377,620.00. Following the sale, the director owned 51,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,258,997.62. This trade represents a 1.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 999 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $367.60, for a total transaction of $367,232.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 17,301 shares in the company, valued at $6,359,847.60. The trade was a 5.46% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 4,924 shares of company stock valued at $1,486,038 over the last three months. 0.81% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of AeroVironment

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in AeroVironment by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,530,073 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,111,585,000 after purchasing an additional 51,959 shares during the period. Groupama Asset Managment purchased a new stake in AeroVironment in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $314,890,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of AeroVironment by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 884,395 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $213,956,000 after buying an additional 71,903 shares during the last quarter. Heard Capital LLC grew its position in shares of AeroVironment by 48.4% in the 4th quarter. Heard Capital LLC now owns 722,150 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $174,681,000 after buying an additional 235,685 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 17.4% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 686,273 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $216,101,000 after buying an additional 101,713 shares during the period. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AeroVironment Company 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.