Aveanna Healthcare (NASDAQ:AVAH) Sees Large Volume Increase – Here’s Why

Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAH) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Friday . Approximately 2,194,922 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 26% from the previous session’s volume of 1,741,440 shares.The stock last traded at $13.02 and had previously closed at $12.97.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AVAH. Raymond James Financial raised their target price on Aveanna Healthcare from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Aveanna Healthcare from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada upgraded shares of Aveanna Healthcare from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $10.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Aveanna Healthcare from $9.00 to $9.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Stephens upgraded shares of Aveanna Healthcare from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $10.00 to $11.00 in a report on Friday, May 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $11.78.

Aveanna Healthcare Trading Up 2.5%

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $9.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $7.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.80, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.47, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.16.

Aveanna Healthcare (NASDAQ:AVAH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The company reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.17 by $0.05. Aveanna Healthcare had a return on equity of 80.70% and a net margin of 10.56%.The company had revenue of $670.48 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $638.61 million. As a group, equities analysts expect that Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc. will post 0.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Aveanna Healthcare news, major shareholder Paul R. Vigano sold 3,000,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.01, for a total transaction of $24,030,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 190,130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,522,941.30. This trade represents a 94.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Robert M. Williams, Jr. sold 3,000,000 shares of Aveanna Healthcare stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.01, for a total transaction of $24,030,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 190,130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,522,941.30. The trade was a 94.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 31,180,664 shares of company stock worth $214,607,160. Company insiders own 5.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aveanna Healthcare

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its position in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 252.4% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 3,351 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 2,400 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Aveanna Healthcare in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in Aveanna Healthcare in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Oxford Asset Management LLP bought a new stake in Aveanna Healthcare in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $64,000. Finally, C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. acquired a new position in Aveanna Healthcare during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $69,000. Institutional investors own 87.96% of the company’s stock.

Aveanna Healthcare Company Profile

Aveanna Healthcare, Inc (NASDAQ: AVAH) is a national provider of in-home health care services, specializing in pediatric skilled nursing, therapy, and related support for medically complex and chronically ill children. The company delivers a range of clinical and therapeutic solutions designed to enable patients to receive care in the comfort of their own homes, reducing the need for hospital stays and long-term institutional care. Aveanna’s offerings include registered nursing, physical, occupational and speech therapy, behavioral health counseling, and durable medical equipment coordination.

In addition to pediatric home health services, Aveanna operates adult home health and personal care support programs, assisting elderly and disabled adults with daily living activities, medication management, and rehabilitation therapies.