Aveanna Healthcare (NASDAQ:AVAH) Sets New 52-Week High After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAH) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $8.00 to $15.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Aveanna Healthcare traded as high as $14.70 and last traded at $14.38, with a volume of 2585273 shares. The stock had previously closed at $14.08.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on AVAH. Raymond James Financial increased their target price on shares of Aveanna Healthcare from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Aveanna Healthcare from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Barclays upped their price objective on Aveanna Healthcare from $9.50 to $15.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 28th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Aveanna Healthcare from $8.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Aveanna Healthcare in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $14.06.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Jeff Shaner sold 90,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.50, for a total value of $1,035,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 2,561,972 shares in the company, valued at $29,462,678. This trade represents a 3.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Paul R. Vigano sold 2,250,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.50, for a total value of $25,875,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 12,315,892 shares in the company, valued at $141,632,758. The trade was a 15.45% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 59,904,505 shares of company stock valued at $649,301,514. Corporate insiders own 5.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Aveanna Healthcare

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AVAH. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Aveanna Healthcare in the second quarter valued at $63,504,000. Braidwell LP grew its stake in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 39.1% during the 2nd quarter. Braidwell LP now owns 3,065,106 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,268,000 after purchasing an additional 861,600 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 49.5% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,334,374 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,593,000 after purchasing an additional 441,707 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 16.4% in the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 951,594 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,128,000 after purchasing an additional 134,043 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Aveanna Healthcare by 4.3% in the first quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 927,030 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,970,000 after purchasing an additional 38,600 shares during the period. 87.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Aveanna Healthcare Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $3.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.59, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.97. The company’s 50 day moving average is $11.48 and its 200 day moving average is $8.69. 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 issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.17 by $0.05. Aveanna Healthcare had a net margin of 10.56% and a return on equity of 80.70%. The company had revenue of $670.48 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $638.61 million. Research analysts forecast that Aveanna Healthcare Holdings Inc. will post 0.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Aveanna Healthcare

Aveanna Healthcare Corporation is a provider of home-based healthcare services for children, adults and families in the United States. The company’s services are designed to help patients receive medical and supportive care in their homes and communities, including individuals with complex, chronic or medically fragile conditions.

Aveanna’s principal services include private-duty nursing, home health, hospice and personal care. It also provides pediatric therapy and related clinical services, including physical, occupational and speech therapy.