Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Buys 35,686 Shares of EchoStar Corporation $SATS

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp increased its stake in EchoStar by 75.9% in Q4, buying 35,686 shares to hold 82,674 shares valued at about $8.99 million.
• Senior insiders sold sizable positions — CEO Hamid Akhavan sold 71,005 shares (~$7.63M) and COO John Swieringa sold 50,088 shares (~$5.69M) — yet corporate insiders still control 55.90% of the company.
• Wall Street is mixed: the consensus rating is Hold with an average price target of $134.17 (3 Buy, 3 Hold, 1 Sell), reflecting divergent analyst views.

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp boosted its stake in EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS - Free Report) by 75.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 82,674 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 35,686 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp's holdings in EchoStar were worth $8,987,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of EchoStar by 6.0% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 26,805 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $672,000 after purchasing an additional 1,511 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in EchoStar by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 72,482 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $1,854,000 after purchasing an additional 3,199 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in EchoStar by 8.1% during the 1st 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 purchasing an additional 24,749 shares during the last quarter. Strs Ohio bought a new stake in EchoStar in the 1st quarter valued at $128,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its holdings in EchoStar by 18.6% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 13,528 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $377,000 after buying an additional 2,119 shares in the last quarter. 33.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

EchoStar Stock Performance

NASDAQ:SATS opened at $123.18 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $35.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.45 and a beta of 0.96. EchoStar Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $14.90 and a fifty-two week high of $137.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.42. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $117.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $103.56.

Insider Transactions at EchoStar

In other news, CEO Hamid Akhavan sold 71,005 shares of the business'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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 823,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $88,520,463.36. The trade was a 7.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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 sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 253,535 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $28,796,505.30. This trade represents a 16.50% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 55.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on SATS. Citigroup increased their price objective on EchoStar from $111.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of EchoStar in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Williams Trading set a $158.00 price target on shares of EchoStar in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of EchoStar in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of EchoStar from $125.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Three equities 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $134.17.

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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