Geode Capital Management LLC Boosts Stake in Viasat Inc. $VSAT

Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) by 8.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,328,854 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 273,369 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 2.46% of Viasat worth $115,266,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brightline Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Viasat by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Brightline Capital Management LLC now owns 2,036,000 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $59,655,000 after purchasing an additional 36,000 shares during the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Viasat during the fourth quarter valued at $830,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S bought a new position in shares of Viasat during the third quarter valued at $4,230,000. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Viasat during the third quarter valued at $7,325,000. Finally, Legacy Capital Group California Inc. bought a new position in shares of Viasat during the third quarter valued at $1,241,000. Institutional investors own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on VSAT. New Street Research began coverage on shares of Viasat in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $100.00 target price for the company. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on shares of Viasat from $58.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Raymond James Financial set a $74.00 target price on shares of Viasat and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viasat in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Barclays set a $49.00 target price on shares of Viasat in a research note on Friday, May 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $77.13.

Viasat Trading Down 7.9%

NASDAQ:VSAT opened at $67.18 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 2.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -231.66 and a beta of 1.71. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $64.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $49.28. Viasat Inc. has a 12 month low of $9.01 and a 12 month high of $89.79.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Craig Andrew Miller sold 5,260 shares of Viasat stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $263,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 21,252 shares in the company, valued at $1,062,600. This trade represents a 19.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Garrett L. Chase sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.50, for a total transaction of $290,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 38,239 shares in the company, valued at $2,772,327.50. The trade was a 9.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 69,846 shares of company stock valued at $4,087,016. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Viasat Profile

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.