20,747,957 Shares in Viasat Inc. $VSAT Bought by BlackRock Inc.

Key Points

• BlackRock acquired 20.75 million Viasat shares worth approximately $1.86 billion, giving it a 15.06% stake in the satellite communications company.
• Institutional ownership remains high at 86.05%, with several firms increasing their positions, while Viasat insiders sold 671,861 shares worth $47.4 million over the past 90 days.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $90.67, although Viasat recently missed quarterly earnings and revenue expectations.

BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 20,747,957 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,863,374,000. BlackRock Inc. owned approximately 15.06% of Viasat as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in Viasat by 2,821.7% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 3,222,981 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $111,065,000 after purchasing an additional 3,112,670 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Viasat by 673.7% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,386,089 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $14,443,000 after buying an additional 1,206,935 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Viasat by 64.9% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,866,242 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $29,866,000 after buying an additional 1,128,338 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Viasat by 43.5% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,307,187 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $96,890,000 after buying an additional 1,002,737 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tema ETFs LLC grew its position in shares of Viasat by 229,857.1% in the 2nd quarter. Tema ETFs LLC now owns 965,820 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $86,740,000 after buying an additional 965,400 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.05% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Theresa Wise sold 2,500 shares of Viasat stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.69, for a total value of $211,725.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 11,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $931,590. The trade was a 18.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Garrett L. Chase sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.23, for a total value of $288,920.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 30,239 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,184,162.97. The trade was a 11.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 671,861 shares of company stock worth $47,405,788 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on VSAT shares. Barclays set a $49.00 target price on Viasat in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Viasat from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on shares of Viasat in a research report on Monday, June 29th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $140.00 price objective on the stock. B. Riley Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Viasat from $94.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $74.00 target price on shares of Viasat and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $90.67.

Viasat Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of Viasat stock opened at $76.67 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $74.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $62.95. Viasat Inc. has a 12-month low of $25.50 and a 12-month high of $93.03. 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 stock has a market cap of $10.56 billion, a PE ratio of -319.46 and a beta of 1.72.

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

Viasat Profile

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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