GW&K Investment Management LLC Takes $17.93 Million Position in AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV

GW&K Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 56,949 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,934,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mengis Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in AeroVironment during the 3rd quarter worth $293,000. ARK Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 28.9% in the 3rd quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 400,457 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $126,100,000 after buying an additional 89,697 shares during the period. Montag A & Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 18.8% in the 3rd quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 726 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $229,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the period. Cresset Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 19.7% in the third quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 6,522 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,054,000 after buying an additional 1,072 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legato Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in AeroVironment by 62.2% during the third quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 2,830 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $891,000 after acquiring an additional 1,085 shares during the period. 86.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AVAV has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered AeroVironment from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. BNP Paribas Exane assumed coverage on AeroVironment in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $355.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on AeroVironment in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $320.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group began coverage on AeroVironment in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $259.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on AeroVironment from $350.00 to $260.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $348.33.

AeroVironment Price Performance

Shares of AVAV stock opened at $229.80 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $284.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $292.63. The company has a market capitalization of $11.47 billion, a PE ratio of -183.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 1.26. AeroVironment, Inc. has a twelve month low of $102.25 and a twelve month high of $417.86. The company has a current ratio of 5.08, a quick ratio of 4.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 9th. The aerospace company reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.43). The firm 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 quarterly revenue was up 150.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.47 EPS. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.400-3.550 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Key Headlines Impacting AeroVironment

Here are the key news stories impacting AeroVironment this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AeroVironment won a $97.4 million U.S. Army contract, reinforcing near-term revenue visibility and supporting demand for Switchblade and other tactical systems. This award is a concrete sales driver ahead of the company’s upcoming quarter. Benzinga: Army Contract
• Positive Sentiment: Sector tailwinds: Market commentary highlights AeroVironment as a core beneficiary of rising defense budgets and the shift to unmanned systems, which can attract buyers rotating into defense names. MarketBeat: Unmanned Profits
• Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming catalysts and investor access: management will present at the J.P. Morgan Industrials Conference (March 18) and Q3 earnings are due imminently — both could move the stock materially depending on guidance and margin commentary. Yahoo: JP Morgan Presentation
• Neutral Sentiment: Corporate items with limited market impact: the company adopted a new executive deferred-compensation plan (administrative). TipRanks: Deferred Comp Plan
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short-interest data in these feeds appears inconsistent (shows zero), so short-covering is not a clear driver from the published figures.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks downgraded AVAV from “hold” to “strong sell,” signaling downgrade-driven selling pressure from momentum or quant strategies. Zacks
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple analysts have cut forecasts or price targets (Robert W. Baird, Piper Sandler, RBC), increasing downside risk from lower sell-side expectations. Baird note Piper Sandler note RBC note
• Negative Sentiment: A shareholder class-action probe by Pomerantz introduces litigation risk and potential headline-driven volatility for investors. PR Newswire: Pomerantz Investigation
• Negative Sentiment: Earnings uncertainty: previews from Seeking Alpha and other outlets warn of margin/cost headwinds and specific program risks (the “1.4B problem”), which could pressure the stock if guidance or margins disappoint. Seeking Alpha: Q4 Preview
• Negative Sentiment: Recent sell-off commentary highlights a sizable pullback ahead of earnings and the potential for further downside if macro or company-specific headlines worsen. Yahoo: Reassessing AVAV Yahoo: Falls More Steeply

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 879 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $267.60, for a total value of $235,220.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 16,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,394,527.20. This represents a 5.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Brian Charles Shackley sold 200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.92, for a total value of $50,184.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,504,014.48. This represents a 3.23% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 4,589 shares of company stock worth $1,428,910. Insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

About AeroVironment

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.