Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) Trading Up 5.9% - Here's Why

Viasat, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT - Get Free Report)'s stock price was up 5.9% on Monday . The company traded as high as $9.35 and last traded at $9.31. Approximately 660,674 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 66% from the average daily volume of 1,961,802 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.79.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on VSAT. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Viasat from $24.00 to $9.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Viasat from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $29.00 to $15.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Bank of America lowered their price target on Viasat from $31.00 to $19.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 20th. StockNews.com lowered Viasat from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 31st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on shares of Viasat from $28.00 to $19.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Viasat currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $18.33.

Viasat Stock Up 4.2 %

The company has a market capitalization of $1.18 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.94 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $9.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $13.15.

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

Insider Activity at Viasat

In other news, EVP Mark J. Miller sold 3,564 shares of Viasat 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 3.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viasat

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VSAT. National Bank of Canada FI bought a new stake in shares of Viasat during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Viasat in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Viasat during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. KBC Group NV lifted its stake 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 valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 1,021 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Viasat by 176.3% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,777 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 1,772 shares in the last quarter. 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.