Aveanna Healthcare (NASDAQ:AVAH) CAO Deborah Stewart Sells 7,738 Shares of Stock

Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAH) CAO Deborah Stewart sold 7,738 shares of Aveanna Healthcare stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.65, for a total transaction of $59,195.70. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 323,884 shares in the company, valued at $2,477,712.60. This trade represents a 2.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Deborah Stewart also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, February 19th, Deborah Stewart sold 11,181 shares of Aveanna Healthcare stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.21, for a total transaction of $80,615.01.
• On Wednesday, February 18th, Deborah Stewart sold 10,896 shares of Aveanna Healthcare stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.38, for a total transaction of $80,412.48.
• On Friday, January 2nd, Deborah Stewart sold 11,962 shares of Aveanna Healthcare stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.85, for a total value of $93,901.70.
• On Wednesday, December 31st, Deborah Stewart sold 11,275 shares of Aveanna Healthcare stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.18, for a total value of $92,229.50.
• On Tuesday, December 30th, Deborah Stewart sold 11,379 shares of Aveanna Healthcare stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.36, for a total value of $95,128.44.

Aveanna Healthcare Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of Aveanna Healthcare stock traded down $0.13 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $7.29. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 224,424 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,230,737. The stock has a market cap of $1.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.26 and a beta of 2.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 140.39, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.23. Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $3.67 and a twelve month high of $10.32. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $8.48 and a 200-day moving average of $8.44.

Key Headlines Impacting Aveanna Healthcare

Here are the key news stories impacting Aveanna Healthcare this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Insiders still retain meaningful stakes — despite the sales, CEO Jeff Shaner, CFO Matthew Buckhalter and other insiders continue to hold multi‑million‑dollar positions, which may signal ongoing alignment with shareholders. SEC Filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short interest data shows zero shares (likely a data/reporting anomaly), so there’s no clear short‑selling pressure indicated by that statistic. Short Interest
• Neutral Sentiment: Today’s trading volume was well below the recent average, which can amplify price moves when large block trades or news hit the tape. (Context from recent price/volume data.)
• Negative Sentiment: Large, concentrated insider selling across Feb. 17–19: CEO Jeff Shaner sold roughly 461,900 shares across the three days (totaling about $3.4M), other executives including an additional director and senior officers sold substantial blocks, and cumulative insider disposals during the period totalled in the high hundreds of thousands of shares — a clear negative catalyst that likely pushed the stock down. See CEO filings. CEO Sales SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple additional executive/director sales (CFO, CAO, and other insiders sold across the same dates), including material dispositions by Edwin C. Reisz and Patrick A. Cunningham, reinforcing a market interpretation that insiders are taking profits or reducing exposure at current levels. Example filings here. Other Insider Filings
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage/analysis noting the drop: independent commentary flagged the same insider selling as the primary reason for a recent ~5.7% pullback, reinforcing market attention on the sales. AAII Article

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on AVAH shares. Zacks Research cut shares of Aveanna Healthcare from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Aveanna Healthcare in a report on Thursday, November 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $11.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Aveanna Healthcare in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Truist Financial raised their price target on Aveanna Healthcare from $9.50 to $10.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Aveanna Healthcare from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $11.06.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aveanna Healthcare

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Aveanna Healthcare in the third quarter worth $15,743,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Aveanna Healthcare by 38.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,577,010 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,564,000 after purchasing an additional 1,535,351 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in Aveanna Healthcare by 1,007.1% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,114,717 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,107,000 after purchasing an additional 1,014,030 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC increased its holdings in Aveanna Healthcare by 135.9% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 1,571,308 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,838,000 after purchasing an additional 905,316 shares during the period. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Aveanna Healthcare in the 3rd quarter valued at about $7,922,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.96% of the company’s stock.

About Aveanna Healthcare

Aveanna Healthcare, Inc (NASDAQ: AVAH) is a national provider of in-home health care services, specializing in pediatric skilled nursing, therapy, and related support for medically complex and chronically ill children. The company delivers a range of clinical and therapeutic solutions designed to enable patients to receive care in the comfort of their own homes, reducing the need for hospital stays and long-term institutional care. Aveanna’s offerings include registered nursing, physical, occupational and speech therapy, behavioral health counseling, and durable medical equipment coordination.

In addition to pediatric home health services, Aveanna operates adult home health and personal care support programs, assisting elderly and disabled adults with daily living activities, medication management, and rehabilitation therapies.