Van ECK Associates Corp Buys 101,713 Shares of AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV

Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) by 17.4% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 686,273 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 101,713 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in AeroVironment were worth $216,101,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of AeroVironment by 14.3% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,478,114 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $991,089,000 after buying an additional 433,830 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in AeroVironment in the second quarter valued at approximately $75,690,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in AeroVironment by 75.6% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 609,019 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $173,540,000 after purchasing an additional 262,239 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in AeroVironment by 550.7% during the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 178,204 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $56,115,000 after purchasing an additional 150,819 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rheos Capital Works Inc. bought a new stake in AeroVironment during the third quarter worth $37,787,000. 86.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at AeroVironment

In other AeroVironment news, CAO Brian Charles Shackley sold 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.92, for a total value of $50,184.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer 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 filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 999 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $367.60, for a total value of $367,232.40. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 17,301 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,359,847.60. This trade represents a 5.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 4,589 shares of company stock worth $1,428,910. Company insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on AVAV. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price target on AeroVironment from $400.00 to $330.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Raymond James Financial restated an “underperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on AeroVironment from $486.00 to $429.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on AeroVironment from $375.00 to $325.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane assumed coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Tuesday, November 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $355.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AeroVironment has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $348.33.

AeroVironment Price Performance

Shares of AVAV opened at $227.29 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 4.29, a current ratio of 5.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market cap of $11.35 billion, a PE ratio of -181.83, a PEG ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 1.26. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 12-month low of $102.25 and a 12-month high of $417.86. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $283.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $293.41.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, December 9th. The aerospace company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.43). AeroVironment had a positive return on equity of 3.42% and a negative net margin of 5.08%.The business had revenue of $472.51 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $466.16 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.47 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 150.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.