LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / January 04, 2018 / Active-Investors.com has just released a free earnings report on AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVAV). If you want access to this report all you need to do is sign up now by clicking the following link www.active-investors.com/registration-sg/?symbol=AVAV. The Company posted its financial results on December 05, 2017, for the second quarter of the fiscal year 2018. The maker of unmanned aircrafts' revenue and EPS surpassed analysts' expectations. Register today and get access to over 1000 Free Research Reports by joining our site below:

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Active-Investors.com is focused on giving you timely information and the inside line on companies that matter to you. This morning, AeroVironment most recent news is on our radar and our team decided to put out a fantastic report on the company that is now available for free below:

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Earnings Highlights and Summary

For the three months ended October 28, 2017, AeroVironment's net revenue increased 47% to $73.83 million from $50.12 million in Q2 FY17. The Company's net revenue surpassed analysts' expectations of $63.9 million.

During Q2 FY18, AeroVironment's gross profit increased 78% to $31.00 million from $17.42 million in the same period of last year, primarily due to an increase in product margin of $12.8 million and an increase in service margin of $0.8 million. For the reported quarter, the Company's gross margin increased 700 basis points to 42% of revenue from 35% of revenue in Q2 FY17, primarily due to an increase in revenue and an increase in the proportion of product sales to total revenue.

During Q2 FY18, AeroVironment's operating income was positive $9.26 million versus negative $4.49 million in the comparable period of last year. The improvement was due to an increase in gross margin of $13.6 million and a decrease in research and development (R&D) expenses of $1.2 million, partially offset by an increase in selling, general, and administrative expenses (SG&A) of $1.1 million.

During Q2 FY18, AeroVironment's earnings before tax (EBT) was positive $9.64 million compared to negative $4.22 million in the corresponding period of last year.

For the reported quarter, AeroVironment's net income was $7.02 million compared to a net loss of $4.17 million in Q2 FY17. During Q2 FY18, the Company's diluted earnings per share (EPS) was positive $0.29 compared to negative $0.18 in the same period of last year, surpassing analysts' expectations of negative $0.07.

Segment Details

Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) - During Q2 FY18, the Company's UAS segment's revenue increased 56.7% to $63.99 million from $40.83 million in the comparable period of last year. For the reported quarter, the segment's gross profit increased 89.2% to $28.17 million from $14.89 million in Q2 FY17.

Efficient Energy Systems (EES) - During Q2 FY18, the Company's EES segment's revenue increased 5.9% to $9.84 million from $9.29 million in the corresponding period of last year. For the reported quarter, the segment's gross profit increased 12.3% to $2.83 million from $2.52 million in Q2 FY17.

Balance Sheet

As on October 28, 2017, AeroVironment's cash and cash equivalents increased 46.6% to $117.11 million from $79.90 million as on April 30, 2017. For the reported quarter, the Company's capital lease obligation, net of current portion, was $50,000 compared to $161,000 in Q4 FY17.

During H1 FY18, the Company's net cash provided by operating activities was positive $24.12 million compared to negative $6.28 million in the same period of last year.

As of October 28, 2017, the Company's funded backlog was $127.1 million compared to $78.0 million in Q4 FY17.

Outlook

For FY18, the Company expects revenue to be in the range of $280 million - $300 million, and diluted EPS to be in the band of $0.45 - $0.65.

Stock Performance Snapshot

January 03, 2018 - At Wednesday's closing bell, AeroVironment's stock marginally dropped 0.33%, ending the trading session at $54.67.

Volume traded for the day: 413.90 thousand shares, which was above the 3-month average volume of 412.64 thousand shares.

Stock performance in the last month ? up 22.25%; previous six-month period ? up 38.37%; and past twelve-month period ? up 103.01%

After yesterday's close, AeroVironment's market cap was at $1.33 billion.

Price to Earnings (P/E) ratio was at 42.98.

The stock is part of the Industrial Goods sector, categorized under the Aerospace/Defense Products & Services industry. This sector was up 0.7% at the end of the session.

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