AeroVironment (AVAV) Stock Jumps After Its Laser Drone Killer Goes Prime Time

TLDR

• AVAV rose 1.1% after its LOCUST laser drone-killing system was featured on CBS’s 60 Minutes
• LOCUST costs just a few dollars per shot vs $4 million for a missile to shoot down a $20,000–$40,000 drone
• Funded backlog grew 47% year-over-year in Q3’26, with a book-to-bill ratio of 1.07x
• A $151 million goodwill impairment was recorded after AVAV ended its Space Force SCAR contract
• One analyst rates AVAV a Strong Buy with a $363 price target, citing surging global drone demand

AeroVironment’s LOCUST laser system made national TV on Sunday, and Wall Street noticed.

AVAV rose 1.1% to $209.29 in early Monday trading after CEO Wahid Nawabi appeared on CBS’s 60 Minutes to discuss the company’s directed energy technology. The S&P 500 was up 0.6% and the Dow was up 0.4% at the same time.

AeroVironment, Inc., AVAV

The segment focused on a real problem: Iran’s Shahed drones cost $20,000–$40,000 each. The missiles used to shoot them down cost $4 million. That math has pushed the Pentagon toward cheaper solutions.

LOCUST — which stands for Laser Optical Counter-Unmanned Aerial System for Tactical Use — is one of those solutions. It uses AI to lock onto and track targets, and burns through drone hulls in seconds. The cost per shot? A few dollars.

The system has already been deployed along the U.S. border, where it’s being used to take out drug cartel drones.

Backlog and Production Expansion

Despite the TV boost, AVAV has bigger tailwinds than a Sunday night segment. The company closed Q3’26 with a funded backlog up 47% year-over-year, giving it a book-to-bill ratio of 1.07x.

In Q3’26, the U.S. Army placed a $186 million order for Switchblade 600 Block 2 and Switchblade 300 systems. That order was part of a broader 5-year, $990 million contract awarded in 2024.

AVAV is now expanding its Salt Lake City manufacturing facility to add capacity for $2 billion in additional annual revenue. It’s also planning to grow Titan C-UAS production by 4x in 2026 and 10x by 2030.

In December 2025, the Army awarded AVAV a separate 5-year, $874 million IDIQ contract to support foreign military sales of its drone and counter-drone systems.

AVAV is also in active talks with Asian allies including Taiwan, Japan, and South Korea for autonomous defense systems.

Space Force Setback

The picture isn’t all clean. AVAV recently terminated its contract with the U.S. Space Force for the BADGER phased array antenna system after negotiations over a firm-fixed-price structure broke down.

The company took a $151 million goodwill impairment charge in Q3’26 tied to its space business. Management said the revenue impact would be less than $100 million, but up to $1.5 billion in unfunded backlog may be affected.

AVAV has the option to rebid on the project under new terms.

Coming into Monday, the stock was down 14% year to date — largely a result of that contract news — even as it remained up 60% over the past 12 months.

One analyst has a Strong Buy rating on AVAV with a $363 price target, based on 53.18x FY27 EV/aEBITDA. The stock currently trades at 50.29x, below its historical midpoint.

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