Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) Trading Up 8.9% – Here’s What Happened

Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) shot up 8.9% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $46.35 and last traded at $49.2460. 136,851 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 92% from the average session volume of 1,736,155 shares. The stock had previously closed at $45.23.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on VSAT. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viasat in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley set a $51.00 target price on Viasat in a report on Friday, January 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Viasat from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $36.00 to $48.00 in a research report on Friday, February 6th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Viasat in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on shares of Viasat from $45.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Viasat currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.71.

Viasat Price Performance

The business’s 50 day moving average is $46.43 and its 200-day moving average is $39.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.29 billion, a P/E ratio of -20.73 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 2.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35.

Insider Activity at Viasat

In other Viasat news, CEO Mark D. Dankberg sold 100,000 shares of Viasat stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.34, for a total value of $4,034,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,434,993 shares in the company, valued at $57,887,617.62. The trade was a 6.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Robert James Blair sold 30,411 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.04, for a total value of $1,430,533.44. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 38,108 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,792,600.32. The trade was a 44.38% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 140,881 shares of company stock worth $5,973,317 in the last three months. Insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viasat

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Viasat by 15.9% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,387 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. grew its stake in shares of Viasat by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 7,446 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $257,000 after buying an additional 342 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of Viasat by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 19,360 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $667,000 after buying an additional 349 shares during the last quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury increased its holdings in shares of Viasat by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 46,952 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $1,618,000 after buying an additional 350 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Viasat by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 19,145 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $561,000 after acquiring an additional 361 shares during the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Viasat

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.