Insider Selling: Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) SVP Sells $851,657.73 in Stock

Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) SVP Craig Miller sold 11,893 shares of Viasat stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.61, for a total value of $851,657.73. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 41,570 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,976,827.70. The trade was a 22.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Viasat Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of Viasat stock opened at $61.50 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $73.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $70.21. Viasat Inc. has a 12-month low of $29.13 and a 12-month high of $93.03. The company has a market capitalization of $8.47 billion, a P/E ratio of -256.25 and a beta of 1.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.17 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Viasat Inc. will post -0.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Viasat from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on shares of Viasat in a research report on Monday, June 29th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viasat in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on shares of Viasat from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Viasat from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Viasat currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $90.67.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viasat

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Viasat by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 5,140 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $362,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in shares of Viasat by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 8,605 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $394,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Viasat by 0.9% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 31,858 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $2,861,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Viasat by 935.3% during the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 352 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 318 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Viasat in the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Viasat

Viasat, Inc is a communications company that provides satellite connectivity and related services to commercial, government and consumer customers. Its offerings include broadband internet, in-flight connectivity, maritime communications, enterprise networking and secure communications for government and defense applications.

The company operates a fleet of communications satellites and develops supporting ground infrastructure, network services and connectivity equipment. Viasat serves customers across North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia-Pacific and other international markets, including airlines, shipping companies, businesses, government agencies and households in areas where terrestrial broadband is limited.

Viasat was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Carlsbad, California.