Stephens Investment Management Group LLC Acquires 154,703 Shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)

Stephens Investment Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) by 40.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 541,541 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 154,703 shares during the period. AeroVironment comprises approximately 1.1% of Stephens Investment Management Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC’s holdings in AeroVironment were worth $83,338,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its stake in shares of AeroVironment by 1,515.4% in the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 210 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in AeroVironment in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. bought a new stake in AeroVironment during the 4th quarter valued at $333,000. Tandem Capital Management Corp ADV lifted its position in shares of AeroVironment by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Tandem Capital Management Corp ADV now owns 6,667 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,026,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GDS Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of AeroVironment by 327.3% in the fourth quarter. GDS Wealth Management now owns 9,071 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,396,000 after acquiring an additional 6,948 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 396 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $3,273,480.56. This trade represents a 2.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.27% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

AeroVironment Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of AVAV opened at $176.93 on Friday. 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, Inc. has a 1-year low of $121.38 and a 1-year high of $236.60. The company has a market capitalization of $4.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 101.68 and a beta of 0.52. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $168.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $186.44.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVAV has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded AeroVironment from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $240.00 to $230.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of AeroVironment in a report on Thursday, December 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $225.20.

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.