EchoStar Corporation $SATS Shares Bought by Boothbay Fund Management LLC

Key Points

• Boothbay Fund Management increased its EchoStar stake by 21.7% in the fourth quarter, ending with 82,414 shares worth about $8.96 million. Several other institutional investors also added to their positions, and institutions now own 33.62% of the stock.
• EchoStar shares were down 7.7% in Thursday trading, opening at $111.70. The stock has ranged from a 52-week low of $24.15 to a high of $147.25, and the company carries notable leverage with a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.17.
• The company reported Q1 earnings of -$0.51 per share, missing analyst expectations, while revenue of $3.67 billion slightly topped estimates. Wall Street’s overall view remains Hold, with a consensus price target of $137.71.

Boothbay Fund Management LLC grew its position in shares of EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS - Free Report) by 21.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 82,414 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 14,688 shares during the quarter. Boothbay Fund Management LLC's holdings in EchoStar were worth $8,958,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SATS. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in EchoStar by 6.0% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 26,805 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $672,000 after acquiring an additional 1,511 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in EchoStar by 4.6% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 72,482 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $1,854,000 after acquiring an additional 3,199 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in shares of EchoStar by 8.1% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 331,476 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $8,479,000 after buying an additional 24,749 shares during the period. Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of EchoStar in the first quarter worth about $128,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in shares of EchoStar by 18.6% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 13,528 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $377,000 after buying an additional 2,119 shares during the period. 33.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

EchoStar Trading Down 7.7%

Shares of SATS opened at $111.70 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $32.37 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.23 and a beta of 0.94. EchoStar Corporation has a one year low of $24.15 and a one year high of $147.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.17, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.30. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $125.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $115.79.

EchoStar (NASDAQ:SATS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, May 9th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.51) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.48) by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $3.67 billion during 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 period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.71) EPS.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen raised EchoStar from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 16th. Williams Trading set a $155.00 target price on EchoStar in a research report on Monday, May 18th. New Street Research set a $165.00 target price on EchoStar in a research report on Monday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of EchoStar in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded EchoStar from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $137.71.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Hamid Akhavan sold 52,586 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.00, for a total value of $6,362,906.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 865,633 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $104,741,593. This represents a 5.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 55.90% of the company's stock.

EchoStar Profile

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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