BNP Paribas Financial Markets Reduces Holdings in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets trimmed its holdings in shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,814 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 275 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in AeroVironment were worth $5,978,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AVAV. Security National Bank purchased a new position in shares of AeroVironment during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new position in AeroVironment in the 2nd quarter worth $36,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in AeroVironment during the third quarter valued at $62,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in AeroVironment by 51.0% during the third quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 394 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. Finally, Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI increased its position in AeroVironment by 23.1% in the third quarter. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI now owns 400 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. 86.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AeroVironment Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AVAV opened at $193.10 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $208.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $194.36. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 52-week low of $116.51 and a 52-week high of $236.60. The company has a market cap of $5.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 90.66 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 3.04 and a current ratio of 4.26.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, September 4th. The aerospace company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.28. AeroVironment had a return on equity of 9.87% and a net margin of 7.82%. The company had revenue of $189.48 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $183.18 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.00 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AeroVironment news, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 878 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.54, for a total transaction of $184,854.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 17,376 shares in the company, valued at $3,658,343.04. This trade represents a 4.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders have sold a total of 1,782 shares of company stock valued at $373,609 in the last quarter. 1.27% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVAV has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 price objective on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of AeroVironment from $230.00 to $215.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Baird R W raised shares of AeroVironment from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of AeroVironment from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $161.00 to $220.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors upgraded AeroVironment from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $216.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $211.83.

AeroVironment Company Profile

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.