AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) Short Interest Up 48.2% in December

AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,430,000 shares, an increase of 48.2% from the November 30th total of 1,640,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 446,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.4 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 396 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.73, for a total transaction of $78,697.08. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 16,472 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,273,480.56. The trade was a 2.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,782 shares of company stock valued at $373,609. Corporate insiders own 1.27% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of AVAV. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 38,585 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $7,736,000 after purchasing an additional 1,705 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in AeroVironment by 299.4% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,821 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,037,000 after acquiring an additional 3,614 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in AeroVironment by 39.6% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 7,451 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,494,000 after acquiring an additional 2,115 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of AeroVironment by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 634,189 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $127,180,000 after acquiring an additional 4,948 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 149.7% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 57,245 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $11,477,000 after purchasing an additional 34,318 shares in the last quarter. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AeroVironment Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AVAV traded down $3.84 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $157.66. The stock had a trading volume of 345,640 shares, compared to its average volume of 372,559. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 90.61 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 4.61 and a quick ratio of 3.36. AeroVironment has a 1-year low of $116.51 and a 1-year high of $236.60. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $192.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $189.66.

AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 4th. The aerospace company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.29). AeroVironment had a net margin of 6.39% and a return on equity of 8.12%. The business had revenue of $188.46 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $181.80 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.97 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AeroVironment will post 3.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on AVAV shares. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 target price on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of AeroVironment from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $240.00 to $230.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Raymond James downgraded shares of AeroVironment from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of AeroVironment from $230.00 to $215.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $225.20.

AeroVironment Company Profile

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.