1,508 Shares in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) Acquired by Crescent Grove Advisors LLC

Crescent Grove Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 1,508 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $232,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in AeroVironment by 299.4% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,821 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,037,000 after buying an additional 3,614 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. grew its position in AeroVironment by 22.7% during the 4th quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,893 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $599,000 after purchasing an additional 721 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in shares of AeroVironment by 740.9% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 63,919 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $9,836,000 after buying an additional 56,318 shares during the period. Driehaus Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 120.6% during the second quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 136,603 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $24,884,000 after buying an additional 74,672 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Foundations Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in AeroVironment in the 3rd quarter worth about $271,000. Institutional investors own 86.38% of the company’s stock.

AeroVironment Stock Performance

Shares of AeroVironment stock opened at $180.36 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $171.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $186.00. AeroVironment, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $119.46 and a fifty-two week high of $236.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 4.61 and a quick ratio of 3.36. The firm has a market cap of $5.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 103.66 and a beta of 0.50.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 4th. The aerospace company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.29). AeroVironment had a return on equity of 8.12% and a net margin of 6.39%. The business had revenue of $188.46 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $181.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.97 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AeroVironment

In other AeroVironment news, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 508 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.65, for a total transaction of $110,058.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 16,868 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,654,452.20. This represents a 2.92 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.27% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVAV has been the subject of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of AeroVironment from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $240.00 to $230.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $225.20.

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.