AeroVironment (AVAV) Q3 Earnings: Taking a Look at Key Metrics Versus Estimates

For the quarter ended January 2026, AeroVironment (AVAV) reported revenue of $408.05 million, up 143.4% over the same period last year. EPS came in at $0.64, compared to $0.30 in the year-ago quarter.

The reported revenue compares to the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $472.98 million, representing a surprise of -13.73%. The company delivered an EPS surprise of -5.88%, with the consensus EPS estimate being $0.68.

While investors closely watch year-over-year changes in headline numbers -- revenue and earnings -- and how they compare to Wall Street expectations to determine their next course of action, some key metrics always provide a better insight into a company's underlying performance.

Since these metrics play a crucial role in driving the top- and bottom-line numbers, comparing them with the year-ago numbers and what analysts estimated about them helps investors better project a stock's price performance.

Here is how AeroVironment performed in the just reported quarter in terms of the metrics most widely monitored and projected by Wall Street analysts:

• Revenue- Autonomous Systems (AxS): $278.74 million compared to the $298.27 million average estimate based on three analysts.
• Revenue- Cyber and Directed Energy (SCDE): $129.3 million versus the three-analyst average estimate of $169.37 million.
• Revenue- Contract Services: $130.23 million compared to the $148.86 million average estimate based on two analysts. The reported number represents a change of +367.1% year over year.
• Revenue- Product Sales: $277.81 million versus the two-analyst average estimate of $301.35 million. The reported number represents a year-over-year change of +98.8%.
• Gross margin- Contract services: $20.95 million compared to the $29.8 million average estimate based on two analysts.
• Gross margin- Product sales: $77.84 million versus the two-analyst average estimate of $76.9 million.

View all Key Company Metrics for AeroVironment here>>>

Shares of AeroVironment have returned -17.2% over the past month versus the Zacks S&P 500 composite's -2.3% change. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell), indicating that it could underperform the broader market in the near term.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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