Delphi Financial Group Inc. Takes $3.81 Million Position in AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV

Delphi Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund purchased 12,085 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,805,000. AeroVironment accounts for approximately 2.1% of Delphi Financial Group Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in AeroVironment by 60.0% in the 3rd quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 80 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. grew its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 80 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new position in shares of AeroVironment during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AeroVironment in the third quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AeroVironment in the third quarter worth $31,000. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at AeroVironment

In related news, CAO Brian Charles Shackley sold 200 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,504,014.48. The trade was a 3.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 999 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $367.60, for a total value of $367,232.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 17,301 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,359,847.60. The trade was a 5.46% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,474 shares of company stock valued at $1,390,404. Corporate insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting AeroVironment

Here are the key news stories impacting AeroVironment this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Underlying demand/backlog: Q3 revenue rose ~143% YoY and the company still reports a multi‑hundred‑million to billion‑level backlog that supports longer‑term revenue — a constructive backdrop if execution and contract timing normalize. Q3 revenue and backlog discussion
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support remains: despite trimming targets, many firms (BTIG, Jefferies, Canaccord and others) kept Buy/Outperform ratings, signalling expectations of mid/long‑term upside if AeroVironment regains program visibility and scales production. Analyst note summary (Benzinga)
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings and guidance: Q3 results beat on some metrics (strong YoY revenue growth) but missed consensus on revenue and EPS; management set FY‑2026 EPS guidance of $2.75–$3.10, below street expectations — creates uncertainty but also sets clearer, more conservative targets. Q3 miss and guidance
• Neutral Sentiment: Price‑target downgrades but ratings mixed: several shops cut targets (KeyBanc, Canaccord, BTIG, Jefferies) while mostly keeping Buy/Outperform stances — implies recalibrated expectations rather than broad conviction shift. KeyCorp target cut Canaccord note
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest reporting in feeds shows anomalous/zero values (likely data error); no clear short squeeze signal from those items. Short interest entries (data anomaly)
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction: shares plunged after the Q3 miss and the outlook cut as investors punished reduced near‑term visibility and growth assumptions. Shares fall on Q3 miss
• Negative Sentiment: Contract risk: reports of SCAR/Space Force contract termination or timing disruptions remove material unfunded backlog (reports cite ~$1.4–1.7B), increasing near‑term revenue uncertainty and pressuring sentiment. SCAR contract and backlog risk
• Negative Sentiment: Financing/leverage risk: disclosure of a $727M notes issuance tightens covenants and raises leverage/liquidity risk — an added structural concern for investors already focused on visibility. Notes issuance risk
• Negative Sentiment: Headline/legal/insider risk: Pomerantz launched an investor probe and the CFO disclosed small share sales — both increase short‑term headline risk and may amplify volatility. Pomerantz investigation CFO Form 4

AeroVironment Trading Down 2.3%

AeroVironment stock opened at $207.07 on Friday. AeroVironment, Inc. has a one year low of $102.25 and a one year high of $417.86. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $281.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $291.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 5.51 and a quick ratio of 4.29. The company has a market capitalization of $10.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -47.71, a PEG ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 1.26.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 10th. The aerospace company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $408.05 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $487.94 million. AeroVironment had a positive return on equity of 3.26% and a negative net margin of 13.93%.AeroVironment’s quarterly revenue was up 143.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.30 EPS. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.750-3.100 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on AVAV. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on AeroVironment from $391.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on AeroVironment from $390.00 to $305.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on AeroVironment in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $320.00 price target for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price target on AeroVironment from $335.00 to $315.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price target on AeroVironment from $330.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $318.78.

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.