Insider Selling: Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) Director Sells 100,000 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Viasat Inc. Director Richard Baldridge sold 100,000 shares of stock at an average price of $31.00, resulting in a total transaction value of $3.1 million and a 33.65% decrease in his ownership position.
• The company reported $1.17 billion in revenue for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' estimates, while EPS was $0.17, surpassing a consensus expectation of -$0.15.
• Currently, Viasat holds a consensus rating of "Hold" from analysts, with target prices varying, including a recent increase from Needham & Company from $16.00 to $25.00, indicating potential growth prospects.

Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT - Get Free Report) Director Richard Baldridge sold 100,000 shares of Viasat stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.00, for a total transaction of $3,100,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 197,161 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,111,991. This trade represents a 33.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Viasat Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VSAT traded up $2.37 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $32.92. The company had a trading volume of 4,760,812 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,680,106. The company has a current ratio of 2.11, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. Viasat Inc. has a 52 week low of $6.69 and a 52 week high of $33.85. The firm has a market cap of $4.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.13 and a beta of 1.26. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $23.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $14.78.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.17 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.15) by $0.32. Viasat had a negative net margin of 13.11% and a negative return on equity of 6.37%. The business had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.13 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.30 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Viasat Inc. will post -0.54 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VSAT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Viasat in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on shares of Viasat from $16.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. B. Riley lowered their target price on shares of Viasat from $56.00 to $52.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Viasat from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Viasat in a research note on Wednesday, August 27th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $21.13.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viasat

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Viasat in the second quarter worth $43,000. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Viasat in the second quarter worth $45,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Viasat by 233.4% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,177 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 2,224 shares during the last quarter. MAI Capital Management grew its stake in shares of Viasat by 74.7% in the first quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 3,836 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 1,640 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Viasat by 331.3% in the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 4,779 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 3,671 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.05% of the company's stock.

Viasat Company Profile

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.

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