AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Shares Down 9.1% – Time to Sell?

AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)’s share price was down 9.1% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $141.68 and last traded at $142.12. 1,278,037 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 23% from the average daily volume of 1,666,593 shares. The stock had previously closed at $156.35.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on AVAV shares. KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Tuesday. Zacks Research upgraded AeroVironment from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Wolfe Research downgraded AeroVironment to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Tuesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AeroVironment has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $266.68.

AeroVironment Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $7.40 billion, a P/E ratio of -40.11, a P/E/G ratio of 4.83 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 3.59 and a current ratio of 4.30. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $165.79 and its two-hundred day moving average is $207.60.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, June 29th. The aerospace company reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.37. The business had revenue of $641.62 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $555.97 million. AeroVironment had a positive return on equity of 3.71% and a negative net margin of 9.00%.AeroVironment’s revenue for the quarter was up 133.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.61 EPS. AeroVironment has set its FY 2027 guidance at 3.020-3.340 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AeroVironment

In related news, Director Stephen F. Page sold 250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.41, for a total transaction of $43,602.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 49,001 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,546,264.41. This trade represents a 0.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of AeroVironment

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AVAV. F m Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of AeroVironment in the 4th quarter worth about $1,775,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of AeroVironment in the 4th quarter valued at about $94,655,000. MYDA Advisors LLC purchased a new position in AeroVironment in the fourth quarter worth about $3,628,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in AeroVironment by 92.2% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 20,173 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $5,168,000 after acquiring an additional 9,675 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GW&K Investment Management LLC increased its stake in AeroVironment by 289.9% during the fourth quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 222,055 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $53,714,000 after acquiring an additional 165,106 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.38% of the company’s stock.

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.