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AI brief of an SEC Form 8-K · AeroVironment (AVAV)

AeroVironment names Sean Woodward CFO effective May 1, succeeding Kevin McDonnell

Neutral Impact 4 of 5 leadership Written later

AeroVironment said Sean Woodward, currently CFO of its Autonomous Systems segment, will become Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer effective May 1, 2026, succeeding Kevin McDonnell. McDonnell will remain CFO through April 30, 2026, then move to a non-officer role to help with the transition, and he previously announced plans to retire on July 31, 2026. A change in the top finance role is significant for shareholders because it sets who will oversee financial reporting and strategy going forward.

Key points

  • Sean Woodward, 44, has worked at AeroVironment since 2010 and has held finance roles including Senior Vice President of Finance from September 2024 to May 2025.
  • Woodward's compensation includes an annual base salary of $515,000 and a target bonus of 70% of base salary under the fiscal 2027 plan.
  • Woodward will receive $736,450 of performance restricted stock units tied to cumulative fiscal 2027-2029 financial metrics and $396,550 of restricted stock awards.
  • Kevin McDonnell remains CFO through April 30, 2026, and is expected to stay with the company in a non-officer role starting May 1, 2026.

The filing

CompanyAeroVironment (AVAV)
Form8-K, current report
Filed with the SECApr 13, 2026, 9:10 AM ET
Accession number0001104659-26-042388

Items reported: 5.02 Director / Officer Change7.01 Regulation FD Disclosure

Read the filing on SEC.gov ↗

Written by AI (Anthropic Claude, claude-haiku-5-5) on Nov 8, 2026, 12:58 AM ET, from the text of the filing and its press-release exhibits only. Written later: this filing was briefed after the fact, when past filings were added to the site, so the brief may be read with hindsight; the filing itself is the record of what was known on April 13, 2026.

Briefs are written by AI from the filing text (each brief's own page names the model) and can contain mistakes — open the filing before acting on anything. Impact (1-5) and tone are the model's reading of the filing for shareholders, not a price forecast. Not investment advice.