Viasat Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:VSAT)

Viasat, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Monday. Stock investors acquired 7,736 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 205% compared to the typical daily volume of 2,535 call options.

Viasat Stock Performance

Shares of VSAT opened at $13.09 on Tuesday. Viasat has a 12-month low of $6.69 and a 12-month high of $26.70. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $9.53 and its 200-day moving average is $9.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.71 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.90 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 1.80 and a quick ratio of 1.60.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on VSAT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Viasat from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $15.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, March 24th. William Blair reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Viasat in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. B. Riley cut their price objective on Viasat from $56.00 to $52.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on shares of Viasat from $19.00 to $16.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Viasat from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $18.88.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viasat

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Strs Ohio purchased a new position in Viasat during the 1st quarter valued at about $105,000. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Viasat by 581.1% in the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 353,100 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,679,000 after buying an additional 301,257 shares during the period. Bayforest Capital Ltd acquired a new position in Viasat in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $378,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in Viasat by 69.4% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 252,466 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $2,631,000 after buying an additional 103,396 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Viasat by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 226,184 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,357,000 after buying an additional 14,575 shares during the period. 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.