Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Has $219.35 Million Stake in Viasat Inc. $VSAT

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its Viasat stake by 18.2% in the first quarter, ending with 4.79 million shares worth about $219.35 million and representing roughly 3.53% of the company.
• Viasat reported a mixed quarterly update, with earnings of -$0.02 per share missing Wall Street estimates, while revenue of $1.17 billion came in slightly below expectations but still rose 2.1% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive despite some bearish calls: Viasat has a Moderate Buy consensus, with an average price target of $84.11, though recent insider sales totaled 438,803 shares over the last 90 days.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT - Free Report) by 18.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,789,539 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 738,656 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 3.53% of Viasat worth $219,346,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of VSAT. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Viasat during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd acquired a new position in Viasat during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Viasat during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Viasat in the first quarter valued at $51,000. Finally, EFG International AG acquired a new stake in Viasat in the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. 86.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Viasat

In other Viasat news, Director Theresa Wise sold 2,500 shares of Viasat stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.00, for a total transaction of $172,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 11,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $759,000. The trade was a 18.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Richard A. Baldridge sold 27,122 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.74, for a total transaction of $1,945,732.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 213,355 shares in the company, valued at $15,306,087.70. The trade was a 11.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 438,803 shares of company stock worth $28,655,600. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Viasat Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:VSAT opened at $74.27 on Friday. Viasat Inc. has a 52-week low of $14.11 and a 52-week high of $93.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 2.19 and a current ratio of 2.41. The company has a market capitalization of $10.14 billion, a P/E ratio of -256.10 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $72.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $58.02.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.32 by ($0.34). Viasat had a positive return on equity of 1.58% and a negative net margin of 0.73%.The business had revenue of $1.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.20 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.02) EPS. Viasat's quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Viasat Inc. will post -0.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on shares of Viasat from $58.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Raymond James Financial set a $74.00 target price on Viasat and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. B. Riley Financial increased their price target on Viasat from $94.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Viasat in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Barclays set a $49.00 price target on Viasat in a research report on Friday, May 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Viasat presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $84.11.

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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