Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Viasat Call Options (NASDAQ:VSAT)

Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Friday. Stock traders acquired 41,334 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 810% compared to the average volume of 4,543 call options.

Viasat Stock Up 2.6%

NASDAQ VSAT opened at $62.85 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $49.19 and its 200 day moving average is $41.36. The company has a current ratio of 2.13, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. Viasat has a 12 month low of $7.95 and a 12 month high of $64.46. The stock has a market cap of $8.54 billion, a PE ratio of -24.27 and a beta of 1.45.

Insider Transactions at Viasat

In other news, CAO Camellia E. Fitzgerald sold 2,810 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.00, for a total transaction of $134,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 9,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $477,408. This represents a 22.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Benjamin Edward Palmer sold 2,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.21, for a total value of $110,904.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 25,431 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,175,166.51. This represents a 8.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 40,881 shares of company stock valued at $1,939,317 over the last 90 days. 2.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viasat

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VSAT. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Viasat by 15.9% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,387 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 327 shares during the period. Vise Technologies Inc. lifted its stake in Viasat by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 7,446 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $257,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its stake in Viasat by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 19,360 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $667,000 after purchasing an additional 349 shares during the last quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury lifted its stake in Viasat by 0.8% in 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 purchasing an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Viasat by 1.9% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 19,145 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $561,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares during the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on VSAT. Barclays raised Viasat from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $23.00 to $49.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Needham & Company LLC increased their target price on shares of Viasat from $45.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Viasat in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Morgan Stanley set a $51.00 target price on shares of Viasat in a report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Viasat from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $36.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $51.43.

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.