EchoStar (NASDAQ:SATS) Trading Down 4.8% – What’s Next?

EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS)’s stock price traded down 4.8% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $111.19 and last traded at $111.24. 1,707,192 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 69% from the average session volume of 5,553,854 shares. The stock had previously closed at $116.90.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SATS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Zacks Research upgraded EchoStar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of EchoStar from $125.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of EchoStar from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $82.00 to $110.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of EchoStar in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of EchoStar from $97.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $134.17.

EchoStar Stock Down 4.3%

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $115.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $88.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 0.61. The company has a market cap of $32.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.22 and a beta of 1.01.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Hamid Akhavan sold 285,832 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.33, for a total value of $30,106,684.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 376,805 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,688,870.65. This represents a 43.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 55.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On EchoStar

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SATS. Hollencrest Capital Management acquired a new position in EchoStar in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators acquired a new stake in shares of EchoStar in the third quarter valued at about $28,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of EchoStar in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton bought a new position in shares of EchoStar in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in shares of EchoStar during the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. Institutional investors own 33.62% of the company’s stock.

About EchoStar

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.