Needham & Company LLC Increases Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) Price Target to $58.00

Key Points

• Needham & Company raised its price target on Viasat to $58 (from $45) and maintained a "buy" rating, implying roughly a 21% upside from the stock's prior close.
• The analyst consensus is a Moderate Buy (six Buys, two Sells) with an average target of $47.71, while other recent notes include Deutsche Bank's upgrade to buy ($48) and Morgan Stanley's $51 target.
• Company insiders have been net sellers recently—140,881 shares worth about $5.97 million were sold in the last quarter, and insiders now own 2.20% of the stock.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT - Get Free Report) had its price objective upped by investment analysts at Needham & Company LLC from $45.00 to $58.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "buy" rating on the communications equipment provider's stock. Needham & Company LLC's price objective would suggest a potential upside of 21.26% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on VSAT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Viasat from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $36.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Viasat in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Viasat in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $51.00 price target on shares of Viasat in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $47.71.

Viasat Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VSAT opened at $47.83 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a current ratio of 2.13. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $45.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.50 billion, a PE ratio of -18.47 and a beta of 1.44. Viasat has a 52-week low of $7.36 and a 52-week high of $52.70.

Insider Activity

In other Viasat news, CAO Camellia E. Fitzgerald sold 2,810 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.00, for a total value of $134,880.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 9,946 shares in the company, valued at $477,408. The trade was a 22.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Robert James Blair sold 30,411 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.04, for a total transaction of $1,430,533.44. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 38,108 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,792,600.32. This trade represents a 44.38% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 140,881 shares of company stock valued at $5,973,317 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viasat

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in Viasat during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Viasat by 6,815.4% during the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 899 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 886 shares in the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Viasat during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd bought a new position in shares of Viasat during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Viasat during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 86.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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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