B. Riley Reaffirms “Buy” Rating for Aviat Networks (NASDAQ:AVNW)

Aviat Networks (NASDAQ:AVNW)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reiterated by research analysts at B. Riley in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $36.00 price objective on the communications equipment provider’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $35.00. B. Riley’s target price indicates a potential upside of 49.75% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Aviat Networks in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Lake Street Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $34.00 price target on shares of Aviat Networks in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Aviat Networks from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $33.33.

Aviat Networks Trading Up 6.2%

NASDAQ:AVNW opened at $24.04 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $308.67 million, a PE ratio of 21.78 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $21.51 and its 200 day moving average is $22.35. Aviat Networks has a 12 month low of $15.80 and a 12 month high of $26.83.

Aviat Networks (NASDAQ:AVNW) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The communications equipment provider reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.06. Aviat Networks had a return on equity of 12.04% and a net margin of 2.95%.The business had revenue of $111.47 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.67 million. Sell-side analysts expect that Aviat Networks will post 0.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Pete A. Smith sold 5,350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.39, for a total value of $125,136.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 349,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,173,565.33. This trade represents a 1.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Bruce M. Taten sold 3,268 shares of Aviat Networks stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.39, for a total transaction of $76,438.52. Following the transaction, the director owned 20,391 shares in the company, valued at $476,945.49. This represents a 13.81% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 5.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Comerica Bank boosted its position in shares of Aviat Networks by 40.2% in the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 2,720 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 780 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in Aviat Networks by 96.5% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,281 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 1,120 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers raised its position in shares of Aviat Networks by 6.7% during the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 18,341 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $441,000 after buying an additional 1,148 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Aviat Networks in the second quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Aviat Networks during the third quarter worth $27,000. 78.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Aviat Networks Company Profile

Aviat Networks, Inc is a specialist in wireless transport solutions, designing, manufacturing and selling microwave networking products that enable the secure and reliable transmission of data, voice and video. The company’s offerings address mission-critical communications needs for a broad range of end markets, including telecommunications service providers, utilities, government agencies and enterprises. Its product portfolio spans high-capacity packet microwave radios, IP transport systems and network management software.

Aviat’s core product lines include the WTM series of packet microwave platforms, which deliver scalable throughput and advanced resilience features, and the Eclipse packet microwave systems, which combine broadband capacity with synchronization, security and quality-of-service capabilities.