Echostar (NASDAQ:ECHO) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $24.14 EPS

Echostar (NASDAQ:ECHO) announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday. The company reported $24.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by $24.14, FiscalAI reports. Echostar had a negative net margin of 38.71% and a negative return on equity of 1.28%. The company had revenue of $3.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.59 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($1.06) EPS. The business’s revenue was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Echostar Stock Up 3.5%

ECHO stock opened at $90.04 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 5.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. Echostar has a one year low of $26.47 and a one year high of $147.25. The stock has a market cap of $26.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.61 and a beta of 1.03.

Insider Buying and Selling at Echostar

In other news, CEO Hamid Akhavan sold 52,586 shares of Echostar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.00, for a total value of $6,362,906.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 865,633 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $104,741,593. This trade represents a 5.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Echostar

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ECHO. Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in Echostar by 104.0% in the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,435,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $156,042,000 after purchasing an additional 731,806 shares in the last quarter. Amundi acquired a new stake in shares of Echostar during the 4th quarter valued at about $63,966,000. Two Seas Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of Echostar during the 3rd quarter valued at about $22,333,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S grew its stake in shares of Echostar by 4,766.6% in the 2nd quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 290,875 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,057,000 after buying an additional 284,898 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Taconic Capital Advisors LP acquired a new position in Echostar in the second quarter worth approximately $7,800,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 33.62% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on ECHO shares. New Street Research set a $165.00 target price on shares of Echostar in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Weiss Ratings initiated coverage on shares of Echostar in a research report on Monday, July 6th. They issued a “sell (d-)” rating on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $137.00 price target on shares of Echostar in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Raymond James Financial upgraded Echostar from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $115.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Echostar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $132.00.

Echostar Company Profile

EchoStar Corporation is a communications company that provides satellite and wireless services, video distribution, and broadband connectivity solutions. Its business has historically been centered on satellite technology and related services, serving customers through a range of connectivity and network offerings.

The company operates through several segments that support pay-TV, enterprise, government, and consumer communications needs. Its services and technologies have included satellite television distribution, broadband satellite access, network infrastructure, and wireless communications capabilities.

EchoStar was founded in 1980 and has long been associated with satellite communications in the United States.