5,000 Shares in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) Purchased by Smith Group Asset Management LLC

Smith Group Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 5,000 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $769,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Radnor Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of AeroVironment by 1.0% in the third quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC now owns 5,965 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,196,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI grew its stake in AeroVironment by 23.1% in the 3rd quarter. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI now owns 400 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. raised its holdings in AeroVironment by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 1,434 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $288,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its position in shares of AeroVironment by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 4,170 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $642,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 51.0% in the third quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 394 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the period. 86.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVAV has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised AeroVironment from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $240.00 to $230.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, AeroVironment presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $225.20.

AeroVironment Price Performance

AeroVironment stock opened at $175.04 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $4.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 100.60 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 3.36, a current ratio of 4.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $170.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $186.02. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 52 week low of $119.46 and a 52 week high of $236.60.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, December 4th. The aerospace company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.29). The company had revenue of $188.46 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $181.80 million. AeroVironment had a return on equity of 8.12% and a net margin of 6.39%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.97 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast 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 508 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.65, for a total value of $110,058.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 16,868 shares in the company, valued at $3,654,452.20. The trade was a 2.92 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.27% of the company’s stock.

About AeroVironment

AeroVironment, Inc designs, develops, produces, delivers, and supports a portfolio of robotic systems and related services for government agencies and businesses in the United States and internationally. It operates through Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (SUAS), Tactical Missile System (TMS), Medium Unmanned Aircraft Systems (MUAS), and High Altitude Pseudo-Satellite Systems (HAPS) segments.