Brokerages Set Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) PT at $45.86

Shares of Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eight research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $45.8571.

VSAT has been the subject of several recent research reports. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Viasat in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Viasat in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley set a $51.00 price objective on shares of Viasat in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Viasat from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $36.00 to $48.00 in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viasat in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st.

Viasat Trading Down 11.0%

NASDAQ VSAT opened at $46.39 on Friday. Viasat has a 1 year low of $7.36 and a 1 year high of $52.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 2.13 and a quick ratio of 1.90. The company has a market capitalization of $6.30 billion, a PE ratio of -17.91 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a fifty day moving average of $45.42 and a 200 day moving average of $38.22.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Viasat news, CEO Mark D. Dankberg sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.34, for a total value of $4,034,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,434,993 shares in the company, valued at approximately $57,887,617.62. This represents a 6.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Robert James Blair sold 30,411 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.04, for a total transaction of $1,430,533.44. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 38,108 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,792,600.32. The trade was a 44.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 140,881 shares of company stock valued at $5,973,317 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Viasat

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new position in Viasat in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in 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 last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Viasat during the third quarter worth $28,000. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Viasat in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Viasat in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. 86.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.