Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) Upgraded by Barclays to “Equal Weight” Rating

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) was upgraded by stock analysts at Barclays from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Finviz reports. The firm presently has a $49.00 price target on the communications equipment provider’s stock. Barclays‘s target price would suggest a potential downside of 9.06% from the company’s previous close.

VSAT has been the subject of several other research reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viasat in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley set a $51.00 target price on shares of Viasat in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Needham & Company LLC raised their target price on shares of Viasat from $45.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Viasat in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Viasat from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $36.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.43.

Viasat Trading Up 3.4%

VSAT opened at $53.88 on Wednesday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $7.32 billion, a PE ratio of -20.80 and a beta of 1.45. Viasat has a 1-year low of $7.36 and a 1-year high of $54.51. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $46.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $39.89.

Insider Buying and Selling at Viasat

In other news, SVP Benjamin Edward Palmer sold 2,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.21, for a total value of $110,904.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 25,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,175,166.51. This trade represents a 8.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Craig Andrew Miller sold 5,260 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $263,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 21,252 shares in the company, valued at $1,062,600. This trade represents a 19.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 40,881 shares of company stock worth $1,939,317 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VSAT. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in Viasat by 483.2% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 109,448 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $1,140,000 after acquiring an additional 90,680 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Viasat by 189.7% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 452,933 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $4,692,000 after acquiring an additional 296,612 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in Viasat by 673.7% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,386,089 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $14,443,000 after acquiring an additional 1,206,935 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake 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 worth $29,866,000 after acquiring an additional 1,128,338 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in 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 last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

About Viasat

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.