EchoStar (NASDAQ:SATS) CEO Hamid Akhavan Sells 71,005 Shares of Stock

EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS) CEO Hamid Akhavan sold 71,005 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.52, for a total transaction of $7,634,457.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 823,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $88,520,463.36. This trade represents a 7.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Hamid Akhavan also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, December 11th, Hamid Akhavan sold 285,832 shares of EchoStar stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.33, for a total transaction of $30,106,684.56.

EchoStar Stock Performance

NASDAQ SATS opened at $108.50 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $31.23 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.16 and a beta of 1.01. EchoStar Corporation has a 52-week low of $14.90 and a 52-week high of $132.25. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $115.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $90.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On EchoStar

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SATS. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in EchoStar by 6.0% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 26,805 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $672,000 after purchasing an additional 1,511 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in shares of EchoStar by 4.6% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 72,482 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,854,000 after buying an additional 3,199 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of EchoStar by 8.1% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 331,476 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $8,479,000 after buying an additional 24,749 shares during the period. Strs Ohio acquired a new position in EchoStar during the 1st quarter worth approximately $128,000. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in EchoStar in the second quarter valued at approximately $217,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 33.62% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SATS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of EchoStar from $111.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Williams Trading set a $158.00 target price on shares of EchoStar in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of EchoStar in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of EchoStar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on EchoStar from $125.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $134.17.

Key Stories Impacting EchoStar

Here are the key news stories impacting EchoStar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: S&P 500 inclusion should support demand from index funds and boost liquidity as SATS joins the benchmark. Inclusion often creates one-time buying pressure and higher institutional interest. S&P Rebalance Article
• Positive Sentiment: Operational catalysts remain: coverage highlights the upcoming Falcon 9 launch (EchoStar XXV) and recent spectrum sale that could materially reshape revenue/timing of cash flows — potential upside if launches and spectrum monetization proceed as planned. Falcon 9 / Valuation Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation and timing debate: commentary asks whether SATS is too late to buy after a multi-year rally, signaling mixed analyst views that could keep volatility elevated. Is It Too Late Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short-interest figures in recent filings show zero shares/NaN changes — likely a reporting/data anomaly; this makes short-interest signals unreliable for now. Short Interest Note
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Hamid Akhavan sold 71,005 shares (~$7.63M) on March 6, reducing his stake by about 7.94%; insider selling of this size can weigh on sentiment even if the insider retains a large holding. See the SEC filing. SEC Form 4
• Negative Sentiment: EchoStar COO also executed a multi-million dollar sale ($5.69M), adding to the insider selling narrative that may pressure the stock in the near term. COO Sale Article
• Negative Sentiment: Gray Media’s blackout of 226 local channels is disrupting DISH TV customers nationwide; while this directly impacts DISH, the outage can create negative sentiment across the satellite/pay-TV ecosystem and could be a short-term headwind for companies tied to pay-TV distribution. Gray Media Blackout

EchoStar Company Profile

EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ: SATS) is a global provider of satellite communication solutions, offering a suite of broadband and video delivery services to consumer, enterprise and government customers. The company operates two principal business segments: Broadband and Video. Through its Broadband segment, EchoStar delivers high-speed satellite internet access, managed network services and ground infrastructure for residential, commercial and rural markets. Its Video segment provides satellite fleet operations, teleport facilities and capacity-leasing services to video distributors and content providers.

In the Broadband segment, EchoStar’s Hughes Network Systems division designs and manufactures satellite broadband equipment, including user terminals and gateways, and develops advanced network management technologies.