AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) Shares Down 7.9% – Time to Sell?

AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)’s share price traded down 7.9% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $234.00 and last traded at $236.88. 1,527,007 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 14% from the average session volume of 1,785,440 shares. The stock had previously closed at $257.30.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVAV has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings raised AeroVironment from a “sell (d)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $390.00 price target on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on AeroVironment from $486.00 to $429.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $378.06.

AeroVironment Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 5.08, a quick ratio of 4.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company has a market cap of $11.83 billion, a P/E ratio of -189.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $288.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $294.72.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 9th. The aerospace company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.43). The company had revenue of $472.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $466.16 million. AeroVironment had a positive return on equity of 3.42% and a negative net margin of 5.08%.AeroVironment’s revenue for the quarter was up 150.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.47 earnings per share. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.400-3.550 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 999 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 12th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $6,359,847.60. The trade was a 5.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Brian Charles Shackley sold 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.92, for a total transaction of $50,184.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,994 shares in the company, valued at $1,504,014.48. This trade represents a 3.23% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 3,223 shares of company stock valued at $1,092,503. Company insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AeroVironment

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AVAV. Groupama Asset Managment bought a new position in shares of AeroVironment during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $314,890,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in AeroVironment by 14.3% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,478,114 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $991,089,000 after acquiring an additional 433,830 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its holdings in AeroVironment by 24,798.7% in the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 315,716 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $99,416,000 after purchasing an additional 314,448 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in AeroVironment in the second quarter valued at $75,690,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in AeroVironment by 75.6% in 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. 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.