Lazard Asset Management LLC Takes Position in Viasat, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT)

Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Viasat, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 75,904 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $645,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned 0.06% of Viasat at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Viasat by 26.4% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,229,116 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $10,460,000 after acquiring an additional 256,389 shares during the last quarter. Everett Harris & Co. CA acquired a new position in shares of Viasat in the 4th quarter valued at $1,111,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Viasat by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 413,122 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $3,516,000 after purchasing an additional 12,802 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Viasat by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,773,860 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $117,216,000 after buying an additional 194,006 shares during the period. Finally, Mariner LLC acquired a new position in Viasat in the fourth quarter valued at $682,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.05% of the company's stock.

Viasat Stock Down 9.2%

Shares of VSAT traded down $0.93 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $9.15. 4,066,576 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,797,933. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $9.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $9.28. Viasat, Inc. has a 12-month low of $6.69 and a 12-month high of $26.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. The firm has a market cap of $1.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.72 and a beta of 1.01.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on VSAT shares. William Blair restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Viasat in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Viasat from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Viasat from $26.00 to $12.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on shares of Viasat from $19.00 to $16.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Viasat from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Viasat has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $14.14.

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.