Empowered Funds LLC Makes New Investment in Viasat, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT)

Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in Viasat, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 211,609 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,801,000. Empowered Funds LLC owned 0.16% of Viasat at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. National Bank of Canada FI bought a new position in shares of Viasat during the third quarter worth $27,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Viasat during the third quarter worth about $28,000. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Viasat by 63.7% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,623 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 1,021 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Viasat by 176.3% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,777 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 1,772 shares during the period. Finally, Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Viasat during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $63,000. Institutional investors own 86.05% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VSAT has been the topic of several research reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Viasat from $26.00 to $12.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and issued a $19.00 price target on shares of Viasat in a report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Viasat from $24.00 to $9.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. William Blair restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Viasat in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on shares of Viasat in a research note on Friday, January 24th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $12.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Viasat has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $15.43.

Viasat Stock Up 0.7 %

VSAT stock traded up $0.07 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $9.33. The company had a trading volume of 2,302,221 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,541,341. The company has a market capitalization of $1.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.78 and a beta of 1.35. Viasat, Inc. has a 52 week low of $6.69 and a 52 week high of $26.70. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $9.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 1.80 and a quick ratio of 1.60.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The communications equipment provider reported ($1.23) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.53) by ($0.70). Viasat had a negative return on equity of 8.37% and a negative net margin of 9.49%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Viasat, Inc. will post -0.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Viasat

In other news, insider Cpp Investment Board Private H sold 3,750,000 shares of Viasat stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.00, for a total transaction of $33,750,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,795,334 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,158,006. The trade was a 43.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Mark J. Miller sold 3,564 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.21, for a total value of $32,824.44. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 350,351 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,226,732.71. This trade represents a 1.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Viasat

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.