AeroVironment stock spikes 10% after analyst upgrades on war in Ukraine

AeroVironment Inc. is an American drone manufacturer specializing in autonomous drone manufacturing and recently has come into the spotlight as drones become more important in the Russian war in Ukraine. AeroVironment drones were sent in the first US aid package to Ukraine and included their self-destructing Switchblade drones. In every subsequent aid package, more drones have been promised by the US from the AeroVironment line, including a medium fixed-wing drone, the JUMP 20.

The majority of the drones sent so far have been tube-shot drones that are deployable by 1 or 2 military personnel. AeroVironment isn’t the only military drone manufacturer from the US sending drones, but they have sent several hundred Switchblades in 2 different models (300 and 600)

AeroVironment’s stock spiked on 4-4-2023 by roughly 10% when reports came out from analyst firm Raymond James – they expect AeroVironment sales to ramp dramatically as a result of the conflict. From all publically available data, Raymond James appears to be correct in its bullishness. Not only have drones become more central in modern warfare but many of the drones AeroVironment supplies are essentially loitering munitions that are rapidly consumed.

As a testament from AeroVironment they have launched a page dedicated to the conflict in Ukraine. According to AeroVironment they:

“AeroVironment Stands with the People of Ukraine and all of NATO

We stand for freedom, and we stand with our allies and sovereign nations in their right to protect their homelands and their very lives when this fundamental right is threatened.”

As far as a munitions company – AeroVironment is at least on the right side of the conflict, but the introduction of such powerful weapons of war should not go unnoticed.

A Switchblade 600 can fly 45+ miles and self-destruct with enough force to take out an armored vehicle. One person can operate the drone and carry different types of detonators specialized for personnel or armor.