Advantage Trust Co Makes New Investment in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)

Advantage Trust Co acquired a new stake in AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 500 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $63,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. RiverPark Advisors LLC lifted its stake in AeroVironment by 77.2% in the fourth quarter. RiverPark Advisors LLC now owns 388 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 169 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank lifted its position in shares of AeroVironment by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 11,666 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,301,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the period. Bfsg LLC bought a new position in AeroVironment during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its holdings in AeroVironment by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 19,001 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,395,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new stake in AeroVironment in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Institutional investors own 86.38% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Trace E. Stevenson sold 1,913 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.00, for a total value of $350,079.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 2,570 shares in the company, valued at $470,310. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Melissa Ann Brown sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.77, for a total value of $176,770.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly 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 through this link. Also, VP Trace E. Stevenson sold 1,913 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the vice president now owns 2,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $470,310. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on AVAV shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on AeroVironment from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $161.00 target price on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Friday, March 8th. 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.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.20.

AeroVironment Stock Up 3.2 %

AVAV stock traded up $5.87 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $187.33. 578,346 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 336,663. The company has a quick ratio of 3.16, a current ratio of 4.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $154.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $135.24. The stock has a market cap of $5.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -42.10 and a beta of 0.44. AeroVironment, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $88.24 and a fifty-two week high of $190.12.

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

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.