Geode Capital Management LLC Grows Position in EchoStar Corporation $SATS

Key Points

• Geode Capital Management increased its EchoStar stake by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, adding 48,671 shares to hold 3.52 million shares worth about $382.6 million.
• Several other institutional investors also adjusted positions in EchoStar, and hedge funds and other institutions now own about 33.62% of the stock.
• EchoStar insiders were active as well: CEO Hamid Akhavan and COO John Swieringa both sold shares, while the company’s latest earnings missed EPS estimates even as revenue slightly topped expectations.

Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS - Free Report) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,524,576 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 48,671 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned approximately 1.22% of EchoStar worth $382,595,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Roundview Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of EchoStar during the fourth quarter valued at about $445,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of EchoStar during the fourth quarter valued at about $3,593,000. Allstate Corp bought a new stake in shares of EchoStar during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,166,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of EchoStar by 155.4% during the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 470 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 286 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc increased its position in shares of EchoStar by 47.0% during the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 356,447 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $38,746,000 after buying an additional 114,018 shares during the period. 33.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at EchoStar

In related news, CEO Hamid Akhavan sold 71,005 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.52, for a total value of $7,634,457.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly 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. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO John Swieringa sold 50,088 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.58, for a total transaction of $5,688,995.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 253,535 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,796,505.30. This trade represents 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 currently owned by corporate insiders.

EchoStar Price Performance

SATS stock opened at $129.19 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.17. The company's 50 day moving average is $124.63 and its 200 day moving average is $111.21. The stock has a market cap of $37.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.58 and a beta of 0.95. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, May 9th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.51) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.48) by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.65 billion. EchoStar had a negative return on equity of 4.80% and a negative net margin of 97.56%.During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.71) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that EchoStar Corporation will post -3.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on SATS. New Street Research began coverage on EchoStar in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. They set a "buy" rating and a $161.00 price target on the stock. Williams Trading set a $155.00 price target on EchoStar in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of EchoStar in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Wall Street Zen upgraded EchoStar from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 16th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on EchoStar from $129.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, EchoStar presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $137.14.

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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