Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Buys Shares of 14,079 EchoStar Corporation $SATS

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management opened a new position in EchoStar, buying 14,079 shares valued at about $1.53 million in the fourth quarter.
• Several other institutional investors also increased their EchoStar holdings, and the stock is now about 33.62% owned by institutions.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: EchoStar currently has a “Hold” consensus rating with an average price target of $134.17, while company insiders have recently sold shares, including the CEO and COO.

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd bought a new stake in EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 14,079 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,530,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SATS. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake 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 worth $672,000 after buying an additional 1,511 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of EchoStar by 4.6% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 72,482 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $1,854,000 after buying an additional 3,199 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in shares of EchoStar by 8.1% in the first 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 buying an additional 24,749 shares during the last quarter. Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of EchoStar in the first quarter worth $128,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its stake in shares of EchoStar by 18.6% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 13,528 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $377,000 after buying an additional 2,119 shares during the last quarter. 33.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of EchoStar from $125.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Zacks Research cut shares of EchoStar from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of EchoStar from $111.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of EchoStar in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $134.17.

Insider Buying and Selling at EchoStar

In related news, CEO Hamid Akhavan sold 71,005 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The shares were 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 directly owned 823,293 shares in the company, valued at $88,520,463.36. This represents a 7.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO John Swieringa sold 50,088 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.58, for a total transaction of $5,688,995.04. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 253,535 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $28,796,505.30. The trade was a 16.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 55.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

EchoStar Price Performance

NASDAQ:SATS opened at $127.15 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $36.73 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.53 and a beta of 0.95. EchoStar Corporation has a one year low of $14.90 and a one year high of $137.44. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $118.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $104.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21, a current ratio of 0.42 and a quick ratio of 0.38.

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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