28,615 Shares in EchoStar Corporation $SATS Purchased by DNB Asset Management AS

Key Points

• DNB Asset Management AS opened a new position in EchoStar, buying 28,615 shares valued at about $3.11 million in the fourth quarter.
• Institutional interest in EchoStar remains significant, with hedge funds and other investors owning 33.62% of the company. Several large firms also added to or initiated stakes recently, including very large purchases by DLD Asset Management LP and Carl Icahn.
• Analyst opinions are mixed: EchoStar now has an average "Hold" rating and a mean price target of $137.14. Recent updates included both price-target increases and rating downgrades, reflecting uncertainty around the stock.

DNB Asset Management AS bought a new position in shares of EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 28,615 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,110,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. DLD Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of EchoStar during the third quarter worth about $2,481,700,000. Icahn Carl C purchased a new stake in shares of EchoStar during the third quarter worth about $332,513,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of EchoStar by 2.8% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,744,438 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $133,205,000 after purchasing an additional 48,322 shares in the last quarter. Contrarius Group Holdings Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of EchoStar during the third quarter worth about $98,819,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of EchoStar by 30.1% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 913,292 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $25,298,000 after purchasing an additional 211,421 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.62% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on SATS shares. Zacks Research cut EchoStar from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. New Street Research initiated coverage on EchoStar in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. They set a "buy" rating and a $161.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen raised their price target on EchoStar from $129.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. Wall Street Zen upgraded EchoStar from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of EchoStar in a report on Monday, April 20th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, EchoStar has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $137.14.

Insider Activity at EchoStar

In other news, CEO Hamid Akhavan sold 71,005 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.52, for a total value of $7,634,457.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 823,293 shares of the company's stock, valued at $88,520,463.36. This trade represents a 7.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO John Swieringa sold 50,088 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.58, for a total value of $5,688,995.04. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 253,535 shares of the company's stock, valued at $28,796,505.30. The trade was a 16.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 55.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

EchoStar Stock Performance

NASDAQ SATS opened at $136.52 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.44 billion, a PE ratio of -2.72 and a beta of 0.95. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $121.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $108.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.17, a current ratio of 0.30 and a quick ratio of 0.27. EchoStar Corporation has a 1-year low of $14.90 and a 1-year high of $147.25.

EchoStar (NASDAQ:SATS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 11th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.51) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.48) by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $3.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.65 billion. EchoStar had a negative net margin of 97.56% and a negative return on equity of 4.80%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.71) EPS. On average, research analysts predict that EchoStar Corporation will post -2.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.

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