Intech Investment Management LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Viasat Inc. $VSAT

Intech Investment Management LLC cut its stake in Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) by 40.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 219,270 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after selling 147,233 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Viasat were worth $6,425,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of VSAT. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of Viasat by 483.2% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 109,448 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,140,000 after buying an additional 90,680 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position 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 valued at $4,692,000 after acquiring an additional 296,612 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Viasat by 64.9% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Viasat by 6.9% in 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 in the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on VSAT shares. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $45.00 price target on shares of Viasat in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viasat in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Viasat from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $23.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Viasat from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $52.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Finally, William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Viasat in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Viasat has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $45.86.

Insider Transactions at Viasat

In other news, CEO Mark D. Dankberg sold 200,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.09, for a total transaction of $7,018,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,534,993 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $53,862,904.37. This represents a 11.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Camellia E. Fitzgerald sold 2,810 shares of Viasat stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.00, for a total transaction of $134,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 9,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $477,408. This represents a 22.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 354,290 shares of company stock worth $13,059,722 over the last quarter. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Viasat Stock Performance

VSAT stock opened at $45.78 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $42.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $36.31. The company has a current ratio of 2.13, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. Viasat Inc. has a 12-month low of $7.36 and a 12-month high of $50.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.22 billion, a PE ratio of -17.68 and a beta of 1.47.

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.