Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) Reaches New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $67.24 and last traded at $66.7550, with a volume of 450356 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $65.57.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on VSAT shares. Morgan Stanley set a $51.00 target price on shares of Viasat in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on Viasat from $45.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Viasat in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Viasat from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $36.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viasat in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with 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, Viasat presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.57.

Viasat Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 2.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.14 billion, a P/E ratio of -25.98 and a beta of 1.66. The company’s 50 day moving average is $52.32 and its 200-day moving average is $43.52.

Insider Transactions at Viasat

In other Viasat news, SVP Craig Andrew Miller sold 5,260 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $263,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 21,252 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,062,600. This represents a 19.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Benjamin Edward Palmer sold 2,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.21, for a total value of $110,904.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 25,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,175,166.51. This trade represents a 8.62% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 38,071 shares of company stock valued at $1,804,437 in the last 90 days. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Viasat

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VSAT. Vise Technologies Inc. increased its stake in Viasat by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 7,446 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $257,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its stake in shares of Viasat by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 19,360 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $667,000 after buying an additional 349 shares in the last quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury grew its holdings in shares of Viasat by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 46,952 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,618,000 after buying an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Viasat by 1.9% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 19,145 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $561,000 after acquiring an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Viasat by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 8,039 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $277,000 after acquiring an additional 396 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

About Viasat

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.