Fulcrum Asset Management LLP Purchases 5,047 Shares of AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV

Fulcrum Asset Management LLP purchased a new stake in shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund purchased 5,047 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $723,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in AeroVironment during the second quarter worth $574,566,000. Congress Asset Management Co. increased its position in AeroVironment by 20.1% during the third quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 595,134 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $84,640,000 after acquiring an additional 99,494 shares during the last quarter. American Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in AeroVironment during the second quarter valued at $69,745,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of AeroVironment in the second quarter valued at $67,549,000. Finally, Korea Investment CORP purchased a new stake in shares of AeroVironment in the second quarter valued at $54,901,000. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at AeroVironment

In other news, Director Stephen Page sold 250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.27, for a total transaction of $38,067.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 48,253 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,347,484.31. The trade was a 0.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 600 shares of company stock worth $101,290 in the last ninety days. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

AeroVironment News Summary

Investors following AVAV have been watching these news items:

• Positive Sentiment: The $405 million order for LOCUST X3 systems expands AeroVironment’s Middle East business and provides a sizable multiyear opportunity in counter-drone defense. The company also received a $315 million initial award under a U.S. IDIQ contract with a $940 million ceiling. Together, the awards represent more than $700 million in announced business and support the case that its defense technologies are moving into larger-scale deployment. AeroVironment announces $405 million order
• Neutral Sentiment: While the order news is favorable, coverage noted that AVAV held steady amid mixed trading in other drone stocks, suggesting the contract has not yet prompted a broad sector-wide rally. Drone-stock trading coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Investors still need to watch contract execution and cash conversion. The accompanying analysis says AeroVironment expects negative free cash flow this fiscal year as it invests in manufacturing capacity and supports new programs; recent space-contract delays have also weighed on the company’s outlook. Analysis of the laser-defense order

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on AVAV. Citizens Jmp lowered their target price on shares of AeroVironment from $230.00 to $170.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 19th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Monday, November 2nd. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of AeroVironment from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $225.00 price objective on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of AeroVironment from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Friday, September 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $223.86.

AeroVironment Price Performance

AVAV opened at $120.84 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $135.74 and a 200 day moving average of $177.21. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 52-week low of $100.40 and a 52-week high of $408.25. The company has a quick ratio of 3.33, a current ratio of 4.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The stock has a market cap of $6.14 billion, a P/E ratio of -51.64, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.42.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 9th. The aerospace company reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.37. AeroVironment had a positive return on equity of 4.04% and a negative net margin of 5.77%. The company had revenue of $480.49 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $451.95 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.32 EPS. AeroVironment’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. AeroVironment has set its FY 2027 guidance at 3.020-3.340 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.26 EPS for the current year.

About AeroVironment

AeroVironment, Inc. develops uncrewed aircraft systems and other technology for defense, government and commercial customers. Its products include small drones used for reconnaissance and surveillance, as well as the Switchblade family of loitering munitions. The company also provides counter-drone systems, training, support and related services. Founded in 1971 by engineer and inventor Paul MacCready, AeroVironment has a history of developing aircraft and uncrewed systems. Its customers include U.S. government and military organizations, allied nations and commercial users.