EchoStar Corporation $SATS Shares Purchased by Bessemer Group Inc.

Key Points

• Bessemer Group Inc. dramatically increased its stake in EchoStar, boosting holdings by 13,503.2% in the fourth quarter to 113,995 shares valued at about $12.39 million.
• EchoStar reported quarterly earnings of ($0.51) per share, missing analyst expectations, though revenue of $3.67 billion came in slightly ahead of estimates.
• Analysts are mixed on the stock: the consensus rating is Hold with a $138 price target, while recent insider sales from the COO and CEO added to investor attention.

Bessemer Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS - Free Report) by 13,503.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 113,995 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 113,157 shares during the quarter. Bessemer Group Inc.'s holdings in EchoStar were worth $12,390,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. HB Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in EchoStar by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,933 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $536,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in EchoStar by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,800 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $196,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC acquired a new position in EchoStar during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton acquired a new position in EchoStar during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Amalgamated Bank boosted its position in EchoStar by 0.5% during the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 58,941 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $4,501,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. 33.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

EchoStar Stock Performance

NASDAQ:SATS opened at $137.23 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.17, a current ratio of 0.30 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.74 and a beta of 0.95. The company's 50-day moving average is $120.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $107.25. EchoStar Corporation has a 1-year low of $14.90 and a 1-year high of $139.54.

EchoStar (NASDAQ:SATS - Get Free Report) last posted its 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 previous year, the firm earned ($0.71) earnings per share. Analysts forecast that EchoStar Corporation will post -2.51 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at EchoStar

In other news, COO John Swieringa sold 50,088 shares of the company'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 transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 253,535 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,796,505.30. This represents a 16.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Hamid Akhavan sold 71,005 shares of the company'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 transaction of $7,634,457.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 823,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $88,520,463.36. This represents a 7.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 55.70% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on SATS. New Street Research began coverage on shares of EchoStar in a report on Wednesday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $161.00 target price on the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of EchoStar from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of EchoStar in a report on Monday, April 20th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of EchoStar from $125.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of EchoStar from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $138.00.

EchoStar Company 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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