Mark Dankberg Sells 400,000 Shares of Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) Stock

Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) CEO Mark Dankberg sold 400,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.76, for a total transaction of $25,904,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,082,196 shares in the company, valued at $70,083,012.96. This represents a 26.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Viasat Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VSAT opened at $61.50 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $65.43 and its 200 day simple moving average is $50.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -212.07 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 2.41 and a quick ratio of 2.19. Viasat Inc. has a 1 year low of $10.31 and a 1 year high of $89.79.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $97.00 price objective on shares of Viasat in a research note on Monday, June 1st. New Street Research assumed coverage on shares of Viasat in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $100.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viasat in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Raymond James Financial set a $74.00 price objective on shares of Viasat and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Barclays set a $49.00 price objective on shares of Viasat in a research note on Friday, May 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $77.13.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viasat

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Viasat during the first quarter worth $25,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Viasat by 6,815.4% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 899 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 886 shares during the period. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Viasat during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Viasat during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Viasat during the first quarter worth $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Viasat Company 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.