State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Cuts Stock Holdings in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D reduced its stake in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) by 27.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 18,499 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 7,149 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D owned about 0.07% of AeroVironment worth $2,332,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Bfsg LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AeroVironment during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in AeroVironment during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. RiverPark Advisors LLC lifted its stake in AeroVironment by 77.2% during the fourth quarter. RiverPark Advisors LLC now owns 388 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC purchased a new position in shares of AeroVironment in the 4th quarter worth about $69,000. Finally, Strs Ohio bought a new position in shares of AeroVironment during the 3rd quarter valued at about $133,000. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AeroVironment Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AVAV opened at $162.53 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 3.16 and a current ratio of 4.66. AeroVironment, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $88.24 and a fifty-two week high of $184.61. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $148.68 and a 200-day moving average price of $132.98. The firm has a market cap of $4.57 billion, a PE ratio of -37.71 and a beta of 0.44.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 4th. The aerospace company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.30. The business had revenue of $186.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $170.62 million. AeroVironment had a negative net margin of 15.14% and a positive return on equity of 13.93%. The company’s revenue was up 38.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.33 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that AeroVironment, Inc. will post 2.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on AeroVironment from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $161.00 price objective on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Friday, March 8th. Finally, William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at AeroVironment

In other news, SVP Melissa Ann Brown sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.77, for a total transaction of $176,770.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 12,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,181,165.03. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, SVP Melissa Ann Brown sold 1,000 shares of AeroVironment stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.77, for a total transaction of $176,770.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 12,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,181,165.03. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Trace E. Stevenson sold 1,913 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.00, for a total transaction of $350,079.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $470,310. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About AeroVironment

AeroVironment, Inc designs, develops, produces, delivers, and supports a portfolio of robotic systems and related services for government agencies and businesses in the United States and internationally. It operates through Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (SUAS), Tactical Missile System (TMS), Medium Unmanned Aircraft Systems (MUAS), and High Altitude Pseudo-Satellite Systems (HAPS) segments.