EchoStar (NASDAQ:SATS) Shares Down 5% – Here’s Why

Shares of EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS) were down 5% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $116.50 and last traded at $114.9570. Approximately 2,548,584 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 64% from the average daily volume of 7,038,973 shares. The stock had previously closed at $120.97.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on SATS shares. UBS Group lifted their price target on EchoStar from $125.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Williams Trading set a $155.00 price target on EchoStar in a report on Monday, May 18th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of EchoStar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of EchoStar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. Finally, New Street Research set a $165.00 price target on shares of EchoStar in a research note on Monday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $137.71.

EchoStar Trading Down 7.9%

The firm has a market cap of $32.30 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.25 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a 50 day moving average of $125.64 and a 200 day moving average of $115.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.17, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.30.

EchoStar (NASDAQ:SATS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, May 9th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.51) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.48) by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.65 billion. EchoStar had a negative net margin of 97.56% and a negative return on equity of 4.80%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.71) EPS.

Insider Transactions at EchoStar

In related news, CEO Hamid Akhavan sold 52,586 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 865,633 shares in the company, valued at approximately $104,741,593. This represents a 5.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 55.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On EchoStar

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Hollencrest Capital Management bought a new stake in EchoStar in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of EchoStar in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton bought a new stake in shares of EchoStar in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. bought a new position in EchoStar during the first quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in EchoStar by 134.8% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 324 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the period. 33.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

EchoStar Company Profile

EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ: SATS) is a global provider of satellite communication solutions, offering a suite of broadband and video delivery services to consumer, enterprise and government customers. The company operates two principal business segments: Broadband and Video. Through its Broadband segment, EchoStar delivers high-speed satellite internet access, managed network services and ground infrastructure for residential, commercial and rural markets. Its Video segment provides satellite fleet operations, teleport facilities and capacity-leasing services to video distributors and content providers.

In the Broadband segment, EchoStar’s Hughes Network Systems division designs and manufactures satellite broadband equipment, including user terminals and gateways, and develops advanced network management technologies.