Key Points
- CAO Camellia Fitzgerald sold 2,810 shares of Viasat on Jan. 28 at an average price of $48 for a total of $134,880, reducing her stake by 22.03% to 9,946 shares; the transaction was disclosed in an SEC filing.
- Stock and financial context: Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) opened at $45.17 and trades near its 12‑month high ($49.68) with a market cap of ~$6.11B and a negative P/E (-11.29); the company beat EPS estimates last quarter ($0.09 vs. -$0.11) while revenue was roughly flat, and analysts' consensus rating is "Hold" with an average target of $41.29.
- Heavy institutional ownership: Institutions own about 86.05% of the stock, and several large managers (RBC, AQR, Millennium, Goldman) materially increased their positions recently, indicating significant institutional accumulation despite mixed analyst views.
Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT - Get Free Report) CAO Camellia Fitzgerald sold 2,810 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.00, for a total transaction of $134,880.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 9,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $477,408. This represents a 22.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.
Viasat Stock Performance
Viasat stock opened at $45.17 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.84, a current ratio of 2.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. The company has a market capitalization of $6.11 billion, a PE ratio of -11.29 and a beta of 1.39. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $38.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $32.53. Viasat Inc. has a twelve month low of $7.36 and a twelve month high of $49.68.
Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, November 8th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.11) by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.15 billion. Viasat had a negative return on equity of 3.65% and a negative net margin of 11.40%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.23) earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Viasat Inc. will post -0.54 EPS for the current year.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in shares of Viasat by 483.2% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 109,448 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $1,140,000 after purchasing an additional 90,680 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Viasat by 189.7% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 452,933 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $4,692,000 after buying an additional 296,612 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in Viasat by 673.7% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,386,089 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $14,443,000 after buying an additional 1,206,935 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in Viasat by 64.9% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,866,242 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $29,866,000 after acquiring an additional 1,128,338 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in shares of Viasat by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 226,184 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $2,357,000 after acquiring an additional 14,575 shares during the period. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several analysts have weighed in on VSAT shares. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Viasat in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $45.00 price target on shares of Viasat in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Viasat from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the company from $23.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Viasat in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Viasat from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $52.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, November 10th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Viasat presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $41.29.
Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on Viasat
Viasat Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
Viasat, Inc (NASDAQ: VSAT) provides high‐capacity satellite broadband and wireless communications services to consumer, commercial and government customers worldwide. The company designs and operates satellite systems and network infrastructure to deliver secure, high-speed connectivity across remote and underserved regions, as well as managed networking solutions for enterprises and public sector agencies.
Viasat's product offerings include residential and enterprise satellite internet services, in-flight connectivity for commercial airlines and business jets, and secure networking platforms tailored to defense and intelligence users.
Further Reading
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