Inspire Investing LLC Boosts Holdings in Viasat Inc. $VSAT

Inspire Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) by 232.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 45,463 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 31,808 shares during the quarter. Inspire Investing LLC’s holdings in Viasat were worth $2,082,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in shares of Viasat by 483.2% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 109,448 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $1,140,000 after acquiring an additional 90,680 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Viasat by 189.7% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 452,933 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $4,692,000 after purchasing an additional 296,612 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in Viasat by 673.7% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,386,089 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $14,443,000 after purchasing an additional 1,206,935 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Viasat by 64.9% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,866,242 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $29,866,000 after buying an additional 1,128,338 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of Viasat by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 226,184 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $2,357,000 after buying an additional 14,575 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Mark D. Dankberg sold 400,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.76, for a total value of $25,904,000.00. Following the sale, 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Director Richard A. Baldridge sold 27,122 shares of Viasat stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.74, for a total value of $1,945,732.28. Following the sale, the director owned 213,355 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,306,087.70. This represents a 11.28% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 438,275 shares of company stock worth $28,608,719. 2.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. New Street Research assumed coverage on Viasat in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $100.00 price target on the stock. Barclays set a $49.00 target price on Viasat in a report on Friday, May 29th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viasat in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of Viasat in a report on Monday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $140.00 price target for the company. Finally, 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $84.11.

More Viasat News

Here are the key news stories impacting Viasat this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Viasat partnered with Magnite to bring programmatic advertising to in-flight Wi-Fi, creating a new monetization opportunity for its connectivity platform. Viasat (VSAT) Partners With Magnite To Bring Programmatic Ads To In Flight Wi Fi
• Positive Sentiment: Investors are reacting to recent U.S. Space Force contract wins, which strengthen Viasat’s secure satellite communications business and support a more bullish outlook for defense-related revenue. Viasat stock jumps as Space Force wins fuel bullish analyst outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Oppenheimer initiated coverage with an Outperform rating and a $140 price target, signaling meaningful upside from recent trading levels and helping fuel the rally. Finviz coverage reference
• Positive Sentiment: Options activity surged, with traders buying far more call options than usual, a sign that some market participants are betting on continued upside in VSAT.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts are debating Viasat’s long-term role in the satellite spectrum market, and commentary around the Rocket Lab-Iridium deal has added attention to the sector, though the direct impact on Viasat is less certain. VSAT stock clocks best day in over 10 months
• Negative Sentiment: Some recent commentary urged investors to sell VSAT, suggesting not all market participants are convinced the rally is sustainable. 3 reasons to sell VSAT and 1 stock to buy instead

Viasat Stock Up 17.1%

Viasat stock opened at $89.81 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -309.69 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 2.19 and a current ratio of 2.41. Viasat Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $14.00 and a fifty-two week high of $89.95. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $68.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.28.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 28th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by ($0.34). The business had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.20 billion. Viasat had a negative net margin of 0.73% and a positive return on equity of 1.58%. Viasat’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.02) earnings per share. Analysts predict that Viasat Inc. will post -0.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.