Garrett Chase Sells 4,000 Shares of Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) Stock

Key Points

• Viasat CFO Garrett Chase sold 4,000 shares at an average price of $72.23, generating $288,920. Following the transaction, he retained 30,239 shares, an 11.68% reduction in his ownership.
• Viasat shares recently traded at $72.59, while the company reported quarterly revenue of $1.17 billion and a loss of $0.02 per share, missing analysts’ expectations on both measures.
• Analyst sentiment remains a “Moderate Buy”, with a consensus price target of $84.11, although ratings range from “Strong Buy” to “Strong Sell.” Institutional investors own approximately 86.05% of the stock.

Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT - Get Free Report) CFO Garrett Chase sold 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.23, for a total value of $288,920.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 30,239 shares in the company, valued at $2,184,162.97. This represents a 11.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Viasat Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VSAT traded down $2.27 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $72.59. The stock had a trading volume of 589,499 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,102,715. The company has a market cap of $9.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -250.15 and a beta of 1.70. Viasat Inc. has a twelve month low of $14.50 and a twelve month high of $93.03. The business's fifty day moving average is $72.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 2.41 and a quick ratio of 2.19.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 28th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.32 by ($0.34). Viasat had a negative net margin of 0.73% and a positive return on equity of 1.58%. The business had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.02) EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Viasat Inc. will post -0.39 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $97.00 price target on shares of Viasat in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Zacks Research cut shares of Viasat from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Barclays set a $49.00 target price on shares of Viasat in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Oppenheimer began coverage on Viasat in a research note on Monday, June 29th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $74.00 target price on Viasat and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $84.11.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VSAT. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Viasat during the 4th quarter worth approximately $830,000. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Viasat by 797.5% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 117,019 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $4,032,000 after buying an additional 103,981 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL increased its position in shares of Viasat by 84.3% during the fourth quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 38,700 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $1,334,000 after acquiring an additional 17,700 shares in the last quarter. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Viasat by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. now owns 84,000 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $2,895,000 after acquiring an additional 42,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in shares of Viasat during the first quarter worth $2,757,000. 86.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Viasat Company Profile

Viasat, Inc NASDAQ: VSAT provides high‐capacity satellite broadband and wireless communications services to consumer, commercial and government customers worldwide. The company designs and operates satellite systems and network infrastructure to deliver secure, high-speed connectivity across remote and underserved regions, as well as managed networking solutions for enterprises and public sector agencies.

Viasat's product offerings include residential and enterprise satellite internet services, in-flight connectivity for commercial airlines and business jets, and secure networking platforms tailored to defense and intelligence users.

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