Aviat Networks (NASDAQ:AVNW) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Hold

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

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Aviat Networks in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research raised shares of Aviat Networks from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Citizens Jmp reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $30.00 price target on shares of Aviat Networks in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. B. Riley Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $36.00 price target (up from $35.00) on shares of Aviat Networks in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Roth Mkm dropped their price objective on shares of Aviat Networks from $41.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.50.

Aviat Networks Stock Down 3.5%

AVNW stock opened at $22.93 on Friday. Aviat Networks has a fifty-two week low of $15.80 and a fifty-two week high of $27.02. The company has a market capitalization of $295.80 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.47 and a beta of 0.84. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $24.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $23.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 1.85.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Aviat Networks

In other Aviat Networks news, SVP Gary Croke sold 6,914 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.20, for a total value of $181,146.80. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 43,868 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,149,341.60. The trade was a 13.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Pete A. Smith sold 17,086 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.33, for a total value of $449,874.38. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 358,747 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,445,808.51. This represents a 4.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 5.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Aviat Networks

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Aviat Networks by 17.1% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 28,691 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $613,000 after buying an additional 4,187 shares during the last quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Aviat Networks by 17.2% during the fourth quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 42,300 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $904,000 after acquiring an additional 6,200 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Aviat Networks by 73.1% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 81,627 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,745,000 after acquiring an additional 34,478 shares in the last quarter. State of Wisconsin Investment Board purchased a new position in Aviat Networks in the 4th quarter worth approximately $333,000. Finally, Graham Capital Management L.P. bought a new position in Aviat Networks in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $207,000. 78.62% of the stock is currently owned by 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.