Aviat Networks (NASDAQ:AVNW) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Aviat Networks (NASDAQ:AVNW) was downgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Citizens Jmp reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $30.00 price objective on shares of Aviat Networks in a research note on Wednesday. Lake Street Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $34.00 target price on shares of Aviat Networks in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. B. Riley Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $36.00 price target (up from $35.00) on shares of Aviat Networks in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Aviat Networks in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Roth Mkm lowered their price objective on Aviat Networks from $41.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.80.

Aviat Networks Stock Performance

Shares of AVNW stock opened at $26.36 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $21.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $22.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $340.04 million, a PE ratio of 23.54 and a beta of 0.96. Aviat Networks has a 52-week low of $15.80 and a 52-week high of $27.02.

Aviat Networks (NASDAQ:AVNW) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The communications equipment provider reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $111.47 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.67 million. Aviat Networks had a return on equity of 10.71% and a net margin of 3.27%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Aviat Networks will post 0.5 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Aviat Networks

In other news, Director Bruce M. Taten sold 3,268 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.39, for a total transaction of $76,438.52. Following the sale, the director owned 20,391 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $476,945.49. The trade was a 13.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Pete A. Smith sold 5,350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.39, for a total value of $125,136.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 349,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,173,565.33. This represents a 1.51% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 5.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Aviat Networks

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AVNW. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Aviat Networks in the second quarter valued at $28,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Aviat Networks during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of Aviat Networks by 96.5% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,281 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 1,120 shares in the last quarter. Comerica Bank grew its stake in Aviat Networks by 40.2% in the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 2,720 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 780 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new position in Aviat Networks during the 3rd quarter valued at about $63,000. 78.62% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Aviat Networks

Aviat Networks, Inc is a specialist in wireless transport solutions, designing, manufacturing and selling microwave networking products that enable the secure and reliable transmission of data, voice and video. The company’s offerings address mission-critical communications needs for a broad range of end markets, including telecommunications service providers, utilities, government agencies and enterprises. Its product portfolio spans high-capacity packet microwave radios, IP transport systems and network management software.

Aviat’s core product lines include the WTM series of packet microwave platforms, which deliver scalable throughput and advanced resilience features, and the Eclipse packet microwave systems, which combine broadband capacity with synchronization, security and quality-of-service capabilities.