Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) Trading Up 8.5% – Still a Buy?

Shares of Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) rose 8.5% on Friday . The company traded as high as $74.81 and last traded at $76.7410. Approximately 164,028 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 90% from the average daily volume of 1,712,958 shares. The stock had previously closed at $70.76.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on VSAT shares. New Street Research started coverage on Viasat in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $100.00 price target on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Viasat from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $36.00 to $48.00 in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Raymond James Financial set a $74.00 price target on Viasat and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. B. Riley Financial boosted their target price on Viasat from $52.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Barclays raised Viasat from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $23.00 to $49.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $65.50.

Viasat Trading Up 3.7%

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $58.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $46.32. The company has a current ratio of 2.13, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.97 billion, a PE ratio of -28.37 and a beta of 1.66.

Insider Transactions at Viasat

In other news, SVP Robert James Blair sold 30,411 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.04, for a total value of $1,430,533.44. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 38,108 shares in the company, valued at $1,792,600.32. This trade represents a 44.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Craig Andrew Miller sold 5,260 shares of Viasat stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $263,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 21,252 shares in the company, valued at $1,062,600. This trade represents a 19.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 38,071 shares of company stock worth $1,804,437 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viasat

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BankChampaign National Association purchased a new position in shares of Viasat during the first quarter valued at approximately $437,000. Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Viasat by 88.4% in the first quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 29,825 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,366,000 after purchasing an additional 13,998 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in Viasat by 11.4% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 52,637 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $2,412,000 after buying an additional 5,400 shares during the period. South Dakota Investment Council lifted its holdings in Viasat by 92.6% during the first quarter. South Dakota Investment Council now owns 336,056 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $15,391,000 after buying an additional 161,552 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Viasat by 78.1% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,026 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $184,000 after buying an additional 1,766 shares during the period. 86.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Viasat Company Profile

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.