Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. Acquires 5,747 Shares of AeroVironment, Inc. $AVAV

Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its holdings in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) by 199.2% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 8,632 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 5,747 shares during the quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in AeroVironment were worth $2,718,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 60.0% in the 3rd quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 80 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. boosted its stake in AeroVironment by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 80 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC bought a new stake in AeroVironment in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in AeroVironment during the third quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. acquired a new position in AeroVironment during the third quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors own 86.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at AeroVironment

In other AeroVironment news, Director Stephen F. Page sold 1,000 shares of AeroVironment stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $377.62, for a total transaction of $377,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 51,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,258,997.62. The trade was a 1.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 999 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $367.60, for a total transaction of $367,232.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 17,301 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,359,847.60. The trade was a 5.46% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,339 shares of company stock valued at $1,353,910. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

AeroVironment Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AVAV opened at $261.33 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 5.08, a quick ratio of 4.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 1-year low of $102.25 and a 1-year high of $417.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.05 billion, a P/E ratio of -209.06, a P/E/G ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 1.23. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $285.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $293.92.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, December 9th. The aerospace company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.43). AeroVironment had a negative net margin of 5.08% and a positive return on equity of 3.42%. The business had revenue of $472.51 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $466.16 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.47 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 150.7% compared to the same quarter last year. AeroVironment has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.400-3.550 EPS. Equities analysts predict that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on AVAV shares. KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of AeroVironment from $285.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $355.00 target price for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered AeroVironment from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $367.00.

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.