Ieq Capital LLC Purchases New Holdings in Viasat Inc. $VSAT

Ieq Capital LLC bought a new stake in Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 29,408 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,641,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of VSAT. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Viasat in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Viasat by 935.3% in the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 352 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 318 shares during the period. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd purchased a new position in Viasat during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Viasat during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, EFG International AG acquired a new position in Viasat in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Viasat Trading Down 3.3%

Viasat stock opened at $72.28 on Tuesday. Viasat Inc. has a one year low of $26.10 and a one year high of $93.03. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $74.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $63.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.52. The company has a market capitalization of $9.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -301.17 and a beta of 1.72.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.32 by ($0.34). The company had revenue of $1.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.20 billion. Viasat had a positive return on equity of 1.44% and a negative net margin of 0.64%.The business’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.02) EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Viasat Inc. will post -0.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Viasat news, SVP Benjamin Edward Palmer sold 2,400 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.46, for a total transaction of $181,104.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 21,159 shares in the company, valued at $1,596,658.14. This trade represents a 10.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director John P. Stenbit sold 616 shares of Viasat stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.46, for a total transaction of $46,483.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,841.64. This represents a 49.28% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 675,861 shares of company stock valued at $47,705,388. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on VSAT shares. New Street Research assumed coverage on shares of Viasat in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $100.00 target price for the company. Barclays set a $49.00 price target on shares of Viasat in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Zacks Research upgraded Viasat from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $97.00 price target on shares of Viasat in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer began coverage on Viasat in a research note on Monday, June 29th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $140.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Viasat presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $90.67.

Viasat 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.