SG Americas Securities LLC Decreases Stake in Viasat Inc. $VSAT

SG Americas Securities LLC cut its stake in shares of Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) by 15.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 98,826 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after selling 18,193 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Viasat were worth $4,526,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in VSAT. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd purchased a new stake in Viasat during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Viasat during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. EFG International AG acquired a new stake in shares of Viasat in the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Danske Bank A S purchased a new position in Viasat in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Viasat by 7,380.0% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,244 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 2,214 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Viasat Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VSAT opened at $76.69 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 2.41 and a quick ratio of 2.19. The firm has a market cap of $10.47 billion, a PE ratio of -264.45 and a beta of 1.70. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $68.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $52.91. Viasat Inc. has a 1-year low of $14.00 and a 1-year high of $89.79.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by ($0.34). The firm had revenue of $1.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.20 billion. Viasat had a positive return on equity of 1.58% and a negative net margin of 0.73%.The firm’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.02) EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Viasat Inc. will post -0.39 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VSAT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. B. Riley Financial raised their price target on Viasat from $94.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on shares of Viasat in a report on Monday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $140.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viasat in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Barclays set a $49.00 price objective on shares of Viasat in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and set a $97.00 price objective on shares of Viasat in a research report on Monday, June 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Viasat presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $84.11.

Insider Activity at Viasat

In other Viasat news, CFO Garrett L. Chase sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.41, for a total value of $249,640.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 34,239 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,136,855.99. This trade represents a 10.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark D. Dankberg sold 400,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.76, for a total transaction of $25,904,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,082,196 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $70,083,012.96. This represents a 26.99% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 438,275 shares of company stock worth $28,608,719. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Viasat Company 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.