Hsbc Holdings PLC Sells 39,475 Shares of Viasat Inc. $VSAT

Key Points

• Hsbc Holdings PLC has significantly reduced its stake in Viasat Inc. by 64.2%, dropping to a position worth $227,000 after selling 39,475 shares in the first quarter.
• Multiple institutional investors have recently made substantial changes to their stakes in Viasat, with 86.05% of the stock now owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
• Analysts have issued mixed ratings for Viasat, with current targets ranging from $10.00 to $56.00, and a consensus rating categorized as "Hold" with an average target price of $21.13.

Hsbc Holdings PLC trimmed its holdings in Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT - Free Report) by 64.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 22,019 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after selling 39,475 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC's holdings in Viasat were worth $227,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of VSAT. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Viasat in the 4th quarter worth about $159,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Viasat by 19.1% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,095,373 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $9,321,000 after purchasing an additional 175,593 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Viasat by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,110,945 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $9,454,000 after purchasing an additional 64,361 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV bought a new position in Viasat during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,631,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in Viasat by 87.1% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 558,251 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $4,751,000 after purchasing an additional 259,849 shares during the period. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Viasat Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VSAT traded up $0.77 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $30.87. The stock had a trading volume of 3,301,476 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,677,131. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $21.93 and a 200-day moving average of $14.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a current ratio of 2.11. The company has a market capitalization of $4.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.68 and a beta of 1.26. Viasat Inc. has a 12-month low of $6.69 and a 12-month high of $33.85.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.15) by $0.32. The firm had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.13 billion. Viasat had a negative net margin of 13.11% and a negative return on equity of 6.37%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.30 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Viasat Inc. will post -0.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on VSAT shares. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on shares of Viasat from $16.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. B. Riley reduced their target price on shares of Viasat from $56.00 to $52.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Viasat in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Viasat from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Viasat in a report on Wednesday, August 27th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $21.13.

About Viasat

Viasat, Inc provides broadband and communications products and services worldwide. The company's Satellite Services segment offers satellite-based fixed broadband services, including broadband internet access and voice over internet protocol services to consumers and businesses; in-flight entertainment and aviation software services to commercial airlines and private business jets; satellite-based connectivity services; mobile broadband services, including satellite-based internet services to energy offshore vessels, cruise ships, consumer ferries, and yachts; and energy services, which include ultra-secure solutions IP connectivity, bandwidth-optimized over-the-top applications, industrial internet-of-things big data enablement, and industry-leading machine learning analytics.