AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) Shares Acquired by UBS Group AG

UBS Group AG boosted its holdings in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV – Get Rating) by 9.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 77,998 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,571 shares during the quarter. UBS Group AG owned about 0.31% of AeroVironment worth $6,681,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its stake in AeroVironment by 3.8% in the third quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 3,400 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $283,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 7.3% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 2,941 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $245,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 202.7% during the third quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 339 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System raised its position in AeroVironment by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 6,699 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $574,000 after acquiring an additional 267 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC raised its position in AeroVironment by 12.0% in the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 2,780 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $238,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. 88.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AeroVironment Trading Down 15.5 %

AeroVironment stock opened at $92.04 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $2.33 billion, a PE ratio of -262.97 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $100.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $92.36. AeroVironment, Inc. has a 52 week low of $70.08 and a 52 week high of $112.39. The company has a current ratio of 3.36, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 6th. The aerospace company reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.01). AeroVironment had a positive return on equity of 2.21% and a negative net margin of 1.74%. The company had revenue of $134.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $126.77 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.32 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 49.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 1.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AVAV has been the subject of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com initiated coverage on AeroVironment in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Raymond James upgraded AeroVironment from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $105.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 4th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on AeroVironment from $106.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Thursday, April 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AeroVironment currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $113.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Stephen F. Page sold 2,105 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.78, for a total transaction of $191,091.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 45,721 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,150,552.38. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About AeroVironment

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AeroVironment, Inc engages in the design, development, production, support and operation of unmanned aircraft systems and electric transportation solutions. The company was founded by Paul B. MacCready, Jr. in July 1971 and is headquartered in Arlington, VA.