AeroVironment, Inc. (AVAV) Stock Price & How to Invest

AeroVironment (AVAV) is a defense technology company specializing in unmanned and autonomous systems. It is best known for small, man-portable drones used by militaries for reconnaissance and surveillance, and for loitering munitions, notably the Switchblade family, which are precision-strike drones that have drawn significant attention from conflicts and rising global demand. AeroVironment also builds larger unmanned aircraft systems, uncrewed ground robots, and develops autonomy software and counter-drone solutions. Its primary customer is the US Department of Defense, with growing international and allied-government sales. The company has expanded through acquisitions into adjacent areas such as space, loitering munitions, and autonomy. The investment story centers on the structural growth of drones and autonomous systems in modern warfare, where small, attritable, intelligent systems are reshaping how militaries operate. Founded in 1971 and historically associated with pioneering work in efficient flight, AeroVironment is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, and is a mid-cap defense growth company tied closely to defense budgets and procurement.

The business is now far larger than it was. Fiscal 2026 (ended April 30, 2026) revenue was about $1.98 billion, up from about $821 million a year earlier after the 2025 acquisition of BlueHalo, but the year ended with a GAAP net loss of about $265 million, including a loss of about $157 million in the quarter ended January 2026. The latest quarter, ended August 1, 2026, brought revenue of about $480 million, up 5.7% from a year earlier and about 5% above estimates, with adjusted EPS of $0.59 against a $0.25 consensus and a small GAAP loss of about $5 million. The shares still fell after the report, and in October AeroVironment signed memorandums with Taiwan's Thunder Tiger on uncrewed systems co-production and with Alpha Unmanned Systems on Jump 20 support, plus a deal to add Elsight's Halo connectivity to its Mayhem 10 drone. Macquarie started coverage at Outperform with a $210 target on October 16, 2026.

AeroVironment depends heavily on US defense procurement, so budget cycles, appropriations timing, and program decisions cause lumpy, hard-to-predict revenue and order flow; worries about a tighter defense budget are the main reason given for the 2026 sell-off in drone stocks. It competes against far larger defense primes as well as a wave of new drone and autonomy startups, which could pressure pricing and share. Demand spikes tied to specific conflicts may not be sustainable, and any easing of geopolitical tension could slow orders. The BlueHalo acquisition added integration risk, raised the share count, and brought about $851 million of debt against about $580 million of cash; GAAP results swung to a net loss of about $203 million over the last twelve months, and free cash flow was slightly negative. The stock has lost about two thirds of its value in a year, and even at about 28 times forward earnings it remains sensitive to any procurement disappointment, as the drop after a quarter that beat estimates showed.

22 analysts publish price targets on AVAV, averaging $216.16 against a $121.79 price as of October 2026, or +77.5%. The published targets run from $148.57 to $315.00, a wide spread, and the ratings split 18 buy, 5 hold, 0 sell. Over the last six months there have been 2 raises and 3 cuts among the published actions. A price target is what an analyst published on a date, not a prediction, and sell-side ratings skew positive across the whole market.

Read the full AVAV forecast and price target for the target table, the recent rating actions by firm, and how the consensus has shifted.

We give no verdict on AeroVironment, Inc.. Both cases are real, which is why the question is contested at all, so here is the strongest version of each.

The case for buying. Loitering munitions demand. The Switchblade family of loitering munitions has seen surging demand from the US and allied militaries, accelerated by recent conflicts that demonstrated the battlefield value of low-cost, precision-strike drones. The most optimistic published target, $315.00, assumes this works close to its best case.

The case against. AeroVironment depends heavily on US defense procurement, so budget cycles, appropriations timing, and program decisions cause lumpy, hard-to-predict revenue and order flow; worries about a tighter defense budget are the main reason given for the 2026 sell-off in drone stocks. The most pessimistic target, $148.57, is roughly what AVAV is worth if this bites instead.

Read the full bull and bear case on AVAV, including what would have to change to break either one. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

No. AeroVironment, Inc. (AVAV) has not split its stock in the last 10 years. That is a statement about the window we check rather than about the company’s entire history, so an older split is possible. It also matters less than it once did: fractional shares mean a high price per share no longer keeps smaller investors out, which removed most of the practical reason to split.

A simple financial snapshot. These are approximations and refresh quarterly; for current figures see AeroVironment, Inc.'s investor relations page or your broker.

• Revenue (TTM): ~$2.0B (FY2026 ~$1.98B, up from ~$821M)
• Latest quarter (ended Aug 1, 2026): Revenue ~$480M (+5.7%), adjusted EPS $0.59 vs $0.25 expected
• Net income (TTM): ~-$203M (GAAP loss)
• Margins (TTM): Gross ~26.5%, operating ~-2.3%
• P/E forward: ~27.6x (trailing not meaningful)
• Cash and debt: ~$580M cash, ~$851M debt
• Dividend yield: None (no dividend)
• Market cap: ~$6.2B ($122.00 share price)

With GAAP earnings negative, AVAV is valued on adjusted forward earnings (about 27.6 times) and sales (about 3.1 times trailing revenue), both far below where the stock traded near its 52-week high of about $408. The market is now pricing a slower path for defense drone spending, while the 22 analysts covering it hold a mean target of about $216. The next report, for the quarter ending October 2026, is expected in early December, with consensus near $0.39 per share on about $512 million of revenue.

If you want AVAV exposure as part of a larger bundle rather than directly, these ETFs hold it meaningfully. Weights are approximate and refresh quarterly.

These are the investment theses AVAV naturally fits into. Each links to a full theme guide listing every other stock that belongs and the ETFs commonly used as a passive proxy.

Other names that sit close to AVAV: same theme, named as a direct competitor, or held beside it in the same funds. Each entry says which. Worth a look if you are thinking about diversification within a thesis rather than concentration on one ticker.

There are three common ways to get AVAV exposure. Buy shares (or fractional shares) directly at any major broker. Hold an ETF that includes it (XAR, ARKX), which spreads the position across many companies. Or build it into a focused thematic portfolio, so AVAV sits alongside other stocks that express the same thesis.

Walnut takes the portfolio route. Describe a thesis where AVAV fits (for example “AI infrastructure” or “dividend-growth large-caps”) and the AI proposes 5 to 6 constituents with target weights. You review the plan and fund it through your own broker when you're ready.

New to this? Start with how to invest in stocks, see how to analyze a stock with AI, or compare the best AI stock analyzers.

AeroVironment (AVAV) is a drone-and-loitering-munitions franchise leveraged to surging US and allied demand for low-cost precision-strike systems. In a portfolio it behaves as a volatile, growth-multiple defense holding sensitive to lumpy procurement timing and conflict-driven demand swings, typically a higher-beta complement to traditional defense primes rather than a steady, dividend-paying anchor. After falling from a 52-week high of about $408 to near $122 by mid-October 2026, the stock now trades at about 28 times forward earnings on roughly $2 billion of annual revenue, so the debate has moved from how fast it grows to how durable drone spending is.

Whether AVAV is worth buying today depends more on your time horizon and what you already hold than on any single call. We walk through valuation, what would have to go right, and the risks in is AVAV a buy or a sell?, and where the stock could go from here in the AVAV stock forecast.

For income investors, whether AVAV pays a dividend and how the payout looks is covered in does AVAV pay a dividend? And to weigh AVAV against a peer, read the full side-by-side comparisons: AVAV vs KTOS and AVAV vs ONDS.