Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Raises Position in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) by 22.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,893 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 721 shares during the quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in AeroVironment were worth $599,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AVAV. Baillie Gifford & Co. raised its position in shares of AeroVironment by 29.1% in the third quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 1,951,393 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $391,254,000 after buying an additional 439,717 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in AeroVironment by 19,950.0% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 267,066 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $53,547,000 after acquiring an additional 265,734 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in AeroVironment by 155.1% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 321,479 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $64,457,000 after acquiring an additional 195,443 shares during the last quarter. Heard Capital LLC increased its stake in AeroVironment by 25.5% in the third quarter. Heard Capital LLC now owns 592,136 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $118,723,000 after acquiring an additional 120,447 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in AeroVironment by 108.4% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 180,824 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $36,255,000 after acquiring an additional 94,062 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.38% of the company’s stock.

AeroVironment Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AVAV opened at $168.74 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $173.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $185.76. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 12-month low of $119.46 and a 12-month high of $236.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 96.98 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a current ratio of 4.61, a quick ratio of 3.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, December 4th. The aerospace company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.29). AeroVironment had a net margin of 6.39% and a return on equity of 8.12%. The company had revenue of $188.46 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $181.80 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.97 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on AVAV shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised AeroVironment from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $240.00 to $230.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $225.20.

Insider Transactions at AeroVironment

In other news, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 396 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.73, for a total transaction of $78,697.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 16,472 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,273,480.56. This represents a 2.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

AeroVironment 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.