Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) Stock Price Down 8.3% – Time to Sell?

Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT)’s share price was down 8.3% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $40.16 and last traded at $39.8320. Approximately 618,450 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 61% from the average daily volume of 1,582,693 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.46.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Raymond James Financial upgraded Viasat from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $52.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, November 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Viasat from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $23.00 to $50.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viasat in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on shares of Viasat from $25.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Barclays restated an “underweight” rating and set a $23.00 target price (up from $10.00) on shares of Viasat in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $32.75.

Viasat Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a current ratio of 2.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.19 billion, a PE ratio of -9.63 and a beta of 1.39. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $35.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $29.20.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, November 8th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.11) by $0.20. Viasat had a negative net margin of 11.40% and a negative return on equity of 3.65%. The business had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.15 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.23) earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Viasat Inc. will post -0.54 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Mark D. Dankberg sold 200,000 shares of Viasat stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,534,993 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,862,904.37. This trade represents a 11.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Robert James Blair sold 2,269 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.61, for a total transaction of $80,799.09. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 68,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,439,961.59. The trade was a 3.21% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 256,529 shares of company stock valued at $9,071,888. 2.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viasat

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Viasat during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new position in Viasat in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Viasat by 6,815.4% during the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 899 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 886 shares during the period. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Viasat during the 3rd quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 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 during the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.