AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Shares Down 6% After Insider Selling

AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)’s share price dropped 6% during mid-day trading on Friday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $263.95 and last traded at $264.63. Approximately 1,111,473 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 31% from the average daily volume of 1,613,096 shares. The stock had previously closed at $281.67.

Specifically, Director Stephen F. Page sold 250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $68,750.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 50,251 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,819,025. This trade represents a 0.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Stephen F. Page sold 500 shares of AeroVironment stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.95, for a total transaction of $127,475.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 50,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,875,229.95. This trade represents a 0.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVAV has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. BNP Paribas Exane began coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $355.00 price target for the company. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $400.00 price objective on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Tuesday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $320.00 target price for the company. Finally, BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and issued a $415.00 price target on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AeroVironment has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $367.00.

Key AeroVironment News

Here are the key news stories impacting AeroVironment this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bull case: a Seeking Alpha deep dive highlights the BlueHalo acquisition, the firm’s LOCUST directed‑energy progress, a $1.1B funded / $3B unfunded backlog and ~93% 2026 revenue visibility — analysts there model a fair value near $290, supporting upside vs. recent prices. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Momentum note: The Motley Fool reports AVAV “climbed 15%” recently, citing an unexpected catalyst and increased Wall Street attention — this type of momentum can attract short‑term buyers. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: New coverage: UBS initiated coverage with a “neutral” rating and a $259 price target (slightly below recent levels) — this provides more liquidity in analyst views but is unlikely to spark a major re‑rating on its own. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor access: AV’s CFO will appear at the Citizens Technology Conference (fireside chat March 2, to be webcast) — useful for incremental transparency but not an immediate earnings catalyst. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation debate: a Yahoo piece questions whether the recent ~33% pullback already prices in risk and examines DCF upside potential — highlights disagreement among investors on fair value, which can sustain volatility. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Critical take: a Seeking Alpha column titled “Shockingly Uninteresting” raises skeptical points on growth durability and excitement, which can reinforce selling pressure among more value‑oriented investors. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Noisy short‑interest reports: multiple feeds flagged a “large increase” in February short interest, but the published figures appear inconsistent/erroneous (zeros/NaN). Even so, headlines about rising shorts can trigger fear/stop‑loss selling and add to intraday downside.

AeroVironment Trading Down 6.0%

The firm has a market capitalization of $13.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -211.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.93 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a quick ratio of 4.29, a current ratio of 5.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $284.88 and its 200 day moving average is $293.52.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, December 9th. The aerospace company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.43). The company had revenue of $472.51 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $466.16 million. AeroVironment had a positive return on equity of 3.42% and a negative net margin of 5.08%.The business’s revenue was up 150.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.47 earnings per share. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.400-3.550 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AeroVironment

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Groupama Asset Managment bought a new position in shares of AeroVironment during the 3rd quarter valued at $314,890,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in AeroVironment by 14.3% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,478,114 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $991,089,000 after buying an additional 433,830 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in AeroVironment in the fourth quarter worth about $94,655,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in shares of AeroVironment by 24,798.7% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 315,716 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $99,416,000 after buying an additional 314,448 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 75.6% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 609,019 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $173,540,000 after purchasing an additional 262,239 shares during the last quarter. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.