Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) Shares Down 7.7% - Should You Sell?

Viasat, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT - Get Free Report) shares dropped 7.7% on Monday . The stock traded as low as $8.11 and last traded at $8.17. Approximately 643,589 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 3,019,662 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.85.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VSAT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Viasat from $31.00 to $19.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Viasat from $24.00 to $9.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price target on shares of Viasat from $28.00 to $19.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Viasat from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price target for the company from $29.00 to $15.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $18.33.

Viasat Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $993.77 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.48 and a beta of 1.34. The stock's fifty day moving average is $8.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The communications equipment provider reported ($1.07) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.54) by ($0.53). Viasat had a negative return on equity of 7.58% and a negative net margin of 8.73%. The firm had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.11 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($6.16) earnings per share. Viasat's quarterly revenue was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Viasat, Inc. will post -2.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Viasat

In other Viasat news, EVP Mark J. Miller sold 3,564 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.21, for a total value of $32,824.44. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 350,351 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,226,732.71. This trade represents a 1.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viasat

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VSAT. National Bank of Canada FI bought a new stake in shares of Viasat during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in Viasat during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Viasat during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. KBC Group NV lifted its position in shares of Viasat by 63.7% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,623 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 1,021 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted 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 worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 1,772 shares during the period. 86.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.