EchoStar Corporation $SATS Shares Sold by Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS) by 34.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 15,810 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after selling 8,181 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings in EchoStar were worth $1,719,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in EchoStar by 11.1% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,665 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $127,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the period. CoreCap Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in EchoStar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton purchased a new position in shares of EchoStar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Amalgamated Bank grew its stake in shares of EchoStar by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 58,941 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $4,501,000 after purchasing an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of EchoStar by 0.8% in the third quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 37,456 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,860,000 after purchasing an additional 298 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.62% of the company’s stock.

EchoStar Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SATS opened at $128.68 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $113.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $96.82. EchoStar Corporation has a 52 week low of $14.90 and a 52 week high of $132.25. The stock has a market cap of $37.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.56 and a beta of 1.00.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on SATS. UBS Group upped their price target on EchoStar from $125.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Morgan Stanley raised shares of EchoStar from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $82.00 to $110.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of EchoStar in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of EchoStar from $97.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of EchoStar from $111.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $134.17.

Insider Activity at EchoStar

In other news, CEO Hamid Akhavan sold 71,005 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.52, for a total value of $7,634,457.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 823,293 shares in the company, valued at $88,520,463.36. This represents a 7.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO John Swieringa sold 50,088 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.58, for a total value of $5,688,995.04. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 253,535 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,796,505.30. The trade was a 16.50% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 55.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

EchoStar Profile

EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ: SATS) is a global provider of satellite communication solutions, offering a suite of broadband and video delivery services to consumer, enterprise and government customers. The company operates two principal business segments: Broadband and Video. Through its Broadband segment, EchoStar delivers high-speed satellite internet access, managed network services and ground infrastructure for residential, commercial and rural markets. Its Video segment provides satellite fleet operations, teleport facilities and capacity-leasing services to video distributors and content providers.

In the Broadband segment, EchoStar’s Hughes Network Systems division designs and manufactures satellite broadband equipment, including user terminals and gateways, and develops advanced network management technologies.