GDS Wealth Management Acquires 6,948 Shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV)

GDS Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV) by 327.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,071 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,948 shares during the period. GDS Wealth Management’s holdings in AeroVironment were worth $1,396,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Baillie Gifford & Co. lifted its stake in AeroVironment by 29.1% during the third quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 1,951,393 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $391,254,000 after purchasing an additional 439,717 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in AeroVironment by 0.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,582,871 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $317,366,000 after purchasing an additional 7,471 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in AeroVironment by 0.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 634,189 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $127,180,000 after purchasing an additional 4,948 shares during the last quarter. Heard Capital LLC lifted its stake in AeroVironment by 25.5% during the third quarter. Heard Capital LLC now owns 592,136 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $118,723,000 after purchasing an additional 120,447 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in AeroVironment by 155.1% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 321,479 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $64,457,000 after purchasing an additional 195,443 shares during the last quarter. 86.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AeroVironment Stock Performance

NASDAQ AVAV opened at $172.98 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 99.41 and a beta of 0.50. AeroVironment, Inc. has a twelve month low of $119.54 and a twelve month high of $236.60. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $169.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $186.17. The company has a quick ratio of 3.36, a current ratio of 4.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02.

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

Insider Activity at AeroVironment

In other AeroVironment news, CFO Kevin Patrick Mcdonnell sold 396 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.73, for a total transaction of $78,697.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 16,472 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,273,480.56. This trade represents a 2.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on AVAV shares. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded AeroVironment from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $240.00 to $230.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. William Blair reiterated 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 issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AeroVironment has a consensus 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.