132,523 Shares in Viasat Inc. $VSAT Purchased by Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management acquired 132,523 Viasat shares worth approximately $11.9 million, while institutional investors collectively owned 86.05% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $90.67; several firms recently raised their targets above $100.
• Viasat shares opened at $74.03 after declining 3.4%. The company’s latest quarterly results missed expectations, reporting a $0.02 loss per share versus the $0.32 consensus estimate, although revenue increased 2.1% year over year to $1.17 billion.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 132,523 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $11,902,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.10% of Viasat at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of VSAT. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Viasat in the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Viasat by 935.3% during the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 352 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 318 shares during the period. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Viasat in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Viasat in the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, EFG International AG acquired a new position in Viasat in the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. 86.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VSAT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. B. Riley Financial increased their target price on Viasat from $94.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 price target on Viasat in a report on Monday, August 10th. Zacks Research raised Viasat from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on Viasat from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $74.00 price objective on Viasat and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $90.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Richard A. Baldridge sold 223,542 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.62, for a total transaction of $18,021,956.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark D. Dankberg sold 400,000 shares of Viasat stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.76, for a total value of $25,904,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,082,196 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $70,083,012.96. This represents a 26.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 671,861 shares of company stock worth $47,405,788. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Viasat Stock Down 3.4%

VSAT stock opened at $74.03 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $74.53 and a two-hundred day moving average of $63.15. The company has a market cap of $10.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -308.46 and a beta of 1.72. Viasat Inc. has a 12-month low of $25.62 and a 12-month high of $93.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.32 by ($0.34). Viasat had a negative net margin of 0.64% and a positive return on equity of 1.44%. The company had revenue of $1.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.02) earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Viasat Inc. will post -0.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.

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