Insider Selling: Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) SVP Sells $1,579,275.00 in Stock

Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) SVP Craig Miller sold 22,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.19, for a total value of $1,579,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 41,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,917,798.30. This represents a 35.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Craig Andrew Miller also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, October 9th, Craig Miller sold 11,893 shares of Viasat stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.61, for a total value of $851,657.73.

Viasat Price Performance

Viasat stock opened at $63.95 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.81 billion, a P/E ratio of -88.82 and a beta of 1.76. The business has a 50-day moving average of $69.77 and a 200-day moving average of $64.26. Viasat Inc. has a 1 year low of $29.13 and a 1 year high of $93.03.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.32) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.10. Viasat had a negative net margin of 2.07% and a negative return on equity of 0.05%. The business had revenue of $1.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.20 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.09 EPS. Viasat’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Viasat Inc. will post -0.38 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on VSAT. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Viasat from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 price target on shares of Viasat in a report on Monday, August 10th. Needham & Company LLC upped their price objective on shares of Viasat from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viasat in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Viasat from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $93.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viasat

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Clearwater Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Viasat during the 3rd quarter worth about $591,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in Viasat by 56.3% in the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 118,242 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $8,322,000 after purchasing an additional 42,610 shares in the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its holdings in Viasat by 55.7% during the third quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 30,764 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $2,165,000 after buying an additional 11,008 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Viasat by 169.3% in the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 412 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares during the period. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Viasat by 9.7% in the 3rd quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,387 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $731,000 after acquiring an additional 922 shares during the period. 86.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Viasat

Here are the key news stories impacting Viasat this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Viasat reported an adjusted loss of $0.32 per share, narrower than analysts’ $0.42 loss estimate, and revenue grew 3.4% year over year. The earnings-per-share beat may be encouraging, although sales fell short of forecasts. Earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Viasat joined an Open Satellite Memorandum of Understanding focused on direct-to-device connectivity. The initiative could create strategic opportunities in satellite-to-phone services, though the article headline provides no details on near-term financial impact. Open Satellite MoU article
• Neutral Sentiment: SVP Craig Miller sold 22,500 shares for about $1.58 million, reducing his direct stake by 35.12%. The disclosure does not state why he sold, so the transaction alone does not establish a change in his outlook. Insider sale report
• Negative Sentiment: Fiscal second-quarter revenue of $1.18 billion missed the $1.20 billion analyst estimate, and the net loss widened. The company also moved from year-ago earnings of $0.09 per share to a loss, tempering the adjusted EPS beat. Quarterly results coverage
• Negative Sentiment: A report said VSAT shares broke below their 200-day moving average, a technical sign that may weigh on investor sentiment. Technical analysis report

Viasat Company Profile

Viasat, Inc is a global communications company that designs, develops and operates satellite and wireless communications systems. Its services support consumers, businesses, governments and other organizations that need connectivity in areas where terrestrial networks may be limited.

The company provides satellite broadband for homes and businesses, in-flight connectivity for commercial and business aircraft, and communications services for maritime customers. Viasat also supplies secure communications, networking equipment and related services to government and defense customers.

Founded in 1986 and headquartered in Carlsbad, California, Viasat serves customers in the Americas and internationally.