Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Makes New $1.68 Million Investment in AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 9,200 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,684,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tema Etfs LLC bought a new stake in AeroVironment in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in AeroVironment during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new stake in AeroVironment in the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. grew its holdings in AeroVironment by 90.0% during the fourth quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 133 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Huntington National Bank lifted its position in shares of AeroVironment by 72.1% during the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 105 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. KeyCorp reduced their target price on shares of AeroVironment from $295.00 to $220.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Raymond James Financial raised shares of AeroVironment from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Zacks Research raised shares of AeroVironment from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of AeroVironment from $315.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Clear Str upgraded AeroVironment to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $277.37.

Trending Headlines about AeroVironment

Here are the key news stories impacting AeroVironment this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AeroVironment won a $500 million U.S. Department of Defense counter-drone contract, reinforcing the company’s role in military modernization and providing another meaningful growth catalyst. AeroVironment Stock Rises On $500 Million Counter-Drone Contract
• Positive Sentiment: The company reported fiscal Q4 EPS of $1.84 versus $1.47 expected and revenue of $641.6 million versus $556.0 million expected, a sharp year-over-year jump that signals accelerating demand. AeroVironment (AVAV) Shares Skyrocket, What You Need To Know
• Positive Sentiment: Management highlighted a record roughly $1.2 billion funded backlog and strong growth in autonomous systems, which supports future revenue visibility and helped fuel bullish analyst commentary. AeroVironment shares jump on strong earnings beat, record backlog and Pentagon spending tailwinds
• Neutral Sentiment: Wedbush initiated coverage on AeroVironment and Kratos with an Outperform view, adding to the positive tone around defense-tech names. AeroVironment, Kratos gain as Wedbush initiates at Outperform
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms announced or repeated securities class-action deadlines tied to prior disclosures, which could add headline risk and pressure sentiment even as the operating story improves. Deadline Alert: AeroVironment, Inc. (AVAV) Shareholders Who Lost Money Urged To Contact Glancy Prongay Wolke & Rotter LLP About Securities Fraud Lawsuit

AeroVironment Stock Performance

Shares of AVAV stock opened at $172.44 on Thursday. AeroVironment, Inc. has a one year low of $135.20 and a one year high of $417.86. The stock has a market cap of $8.73 billion, a P/E ratio of -46.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $175.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $224.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 5.51 and a quick ratio of 4.54.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last posted its earnings results on Monday, June 29th. The aerospace company reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.37. AeroVironment had a positive return on equity of 3.72% and a negative net margin of 9.00%.The company had revenue of $641.62 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $555.97 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.61 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 133.3% on a year-over-year basis. AeroVironment has set its FY 2027 guidance at 3.020-3.340 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.18 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at AeroVironment

In other AeroVironment news, Director Stephen F. Page sold 250 shares of AeroVironment stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.41, for a total transaction of $43,602.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 49,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,546,264.41. The trade was a 0.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing 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. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 750 shares of company stock valued at $133,502. Corporate insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

AeroVironment Profile

AeroVironment, Inc (NASDAQ:AVAV) is a technology company specializing in unmanned aerial systems (UAS), tactical missiles and precision loitering munitions, electric vehicle charging and scalable energy systems. Headquartered in Monrovia, California, the company develops solutions for defense, public safety and commercial markets. Their offerings include small UAS for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, as well as advanced weapons systems designed to meet the needs of modern military operations.

The company’s unmanned aerial systems portfolio features platforms such as the Raven, Puma and Switchblade series, which are deployed by the U.S.