Contrarius Group Holdings Ltd Boosts Stock Holdings in EchoStar Corporation $SATS

Contrarius Group Holdings Ltd lifted its stake in shares of EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS) by 68.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,181,728 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 887,611 shares during the quarter. EchoStar makes up approximately 11.5% of Contrarius Group Holdings Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its biggest holding. Contrarius Group Holdings Ltd owned about 0.76% of EchoStar worth $237,154,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SATS. CoreCap Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of EchoStar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton bought a new stake in EchoStar during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in EchoStar during the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Tucker Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in EchoStar during the 4th quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, BOKF NA raised its position in EchoStar by 300.0% during the 4th quarter. BOKF NA now owns 400 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. 33.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

EchoStar Stock Performance

SATS opened at $116.28 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $33.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.32 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a current ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.17. EchoStar Corporation has a 12 month low of $14.90 and a 12 month high of $147.25. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $125.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $113.09.

EchoStar (NASDAQ:SATS) last announced its earnings results on Saturday, May 9th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.51) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.48) by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.65 billion. EchoStar had a negative return on equity of 4.80% and a negative net margin of 97.56%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.71) earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that EchoStar Corporation will post -3.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on SATS shares. Wall Street Zen raised EchoStar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 16th. Zacks Research lowered shares of EchoStar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of EchoStar from $129.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Williams Trading set a $155.00 price objective on shares of EchoStar in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, New Street Research initiated coverage on shares of EchoStar in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $161.00 price objective on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $137.14.

About EchoStar

EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ: SATS) is a global provider of satellite communication solutions, offering a suite of broadband and video delivery services to consumer, enterprise and government customers. The company operates two principal business segments: Broadband and Video. Through its Broadband segment, EchoStar delivers high-speed satellite internet access, managed network services and ground infrastructure for residential, commercial and rural markets. Its Video segment provides satellite fleet operations, teleport facilities and capacity-leasing services to video distributors and content providers.

In the Broadband segment, EchoStar’s Hughes Network Systems division designs and manufactures satellite broadband equipment, including user terminals and gateways, and develops advanced network management technologies.