AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Stock Price Up 3.4% – What’s Next?

AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) shares traded up 3.4% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $122.49 and last traded at $117.28. 244,545 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 39% from the average session volume of 401,018 shares. The stock had previously closed at $113.38.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on AeroVironment from $220.00 to $146.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of AeroVironment from $230.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Raymond James raised shares of AeroVironment from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $200.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $202.00.

AeroVironment Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $3.42 billion, a PE ratio of 69.56 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a current ratio of 4.61, a quick ratio of 3.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The company has a fifty day moving average of $145.36 and a 200-day moving average of $173.96.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Wahid Nawabi sold 29,366 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.20, for a total transaction of $3,764,721.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 115,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,765,306.80. This represents a 20.32 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.27% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AeroVironment

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVAV. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in AeroVironment by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,098,822 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $476,878,000 after acquiring an additional 35,543 shares in the last quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. lifted its position in AeroVironment by 9.4% in the fourth quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 2,135,280 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $328,598,000 after purchasing an additional 183,887 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,582,871 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $317,366,000 after buying an additional 7,471 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of AeroVironment by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 654,024 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $100,670,000 after purchasing an additional 19,835 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. acquired a new position in AeroVironment during the fourth quarter worth about $93,759,000. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.