Traders Purchase High Volume of Call Options on Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT)

Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) saw some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Investors purchased 12,142 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 91% compared to the typical daily volume of 6,372 call options.

Insider Activity at Viasat

In other news, Director Theresa Wise sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.69, for a total value of $211,725.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 11,000 shares in the company, valued at $931,590. This represents a 18.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director John Stenbit sold 705 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.75, for a total value of $47,058.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 545 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,378.75. This trade represents a 56.40% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 243,763 shares of company stock worth $19,537,987. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viasat

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Viasat by 4.0% in the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 5,140 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $362,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its position in Viasat by 2.6% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 8,605 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $394,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its stake in 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 buying an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in 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 buying an additional 318 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Viasat in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Institutional investors own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Viasat Price Performance

VSAT opened at $70.35 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $75.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $68.82. 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 has a 1 year low of $29.13 and a 1 year high of $93.03. The stock has a market cap of $9.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -293.12 and a beta of 1.76.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VSAT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on Viasat in a research note on Monday, June 29th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 price target on shares of Viasat in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Viasat from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viasat in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Viasat from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $90.67.

Viasat Company Profile

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.