Bank of America Corp DE Cuts Position in Viasat Inc. $VSAT

Key Points

• Bank of America reduced its Viasat stake by 24.1% in the first quarter, selling 436,064 shares and retaining 1.37 million shares worth approximately $62.9 million. Institutional investors still own 86.05% of the company.
• Viasat insiders sold 448,319 shares worth $29.4 million over the past three months, including significant sales by CEO Mark Dankberg and Director Richard Baldridge. The CEO’s sale was made to cover tax withholding related to vested equity awards.
• Viasat’s latest quarterly results missed expectations, with an adjusted loss of $0.02 per share versus the $0.32 consensus estimate and revenue of $1.17 billion versus $1.20 billion expected. Despite the miss, analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $90.67.

Bank of America Corp DE trimmed its holdings in shares of Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT - Free Report) by 24.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,374,170 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after selling 436,064 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE owned 1.01% of Viasat worth $62,937,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Viasat during the fourth quarter worth about $830,000. South Dakota Investment Council boosted its stake in Viasat by 92.6% in the first quarter. South Dakota Investment Council now owns 336,056 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $15,391,000 after acquiring an additional 161,552 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL grew its position in shares of Viasat by 84.3% during the 4th quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 38,700 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $1,334,000 after acquiring an additional 17,700 shares during the period. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Viasat by 100.0% during the 4th quarter. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. now owns 84,000 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $2,895,000 after acquiring an additional 42,000 shares during the period. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in shares of Viasat during the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,757,000. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Viasat news, CEO Mark D. Dankberg sold 400,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.76, for a total transaction of $25,904,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,082,196 shares in the company, valued at approximately $70,083,012.96. This trade represents a 26.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Director Richard A. Baldridge sold 27,122 shares of Viasat stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.74, for a total value of $1,945,732.28. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 213,355 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,306,087.70. The trade was a 11.28% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 448,319 shares of company stock worth $29,383,832 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Viasat Stock Performance

Viasat stock opened at $84.82 on Tuesday. 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 50-day moving average of $72.53 and a 200-day moving average of $61.12. The firm has a market cap of $11.68 billion, a P/E ratio of -353.42 and a beta of 1.72. Viasat Inc. has a 1-year low of $25.17 and a 1-year high of $93.03.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.02) EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Viasat Inc. will post -0.28 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on VSAT. Zacks Research raised Viasat from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Raymond James Financial set a $74.00 target price on shares of Viasat and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. New Street Research began coverage on shares of Viasat in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $100.00 target price on the stock. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on Viasat from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 price objective on shares of Viasat in a report on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Viasat currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $90.67.

Viasat Company 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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