The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Sells 28,538 Shares of Echostar CORP $ECHO

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company decreased its stake in shares of Echostar CORP (NASDAQ:ECHO) by 20.7% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 109,056 shares of the company’s stock after selling 28,538 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Echostar were worth $12,767,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ECHO. Sachem Head Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Echostar during the fourth quarter valued at $568,218,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Echostar by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,524,576 shares of the company’s stock worth $382,595,000 after purchasing an additional 48,671 shares in the last quarter. Contrarius Group Holdings Ltd grew its position in Echostar by 68.6% during the 4th quarter. Contrarius Group Holdings Ltd now owns 2,181,728 shares of the company’s stock valued at $237,154,000 after purchasing an additional 887,611 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Echostar by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,767,338 shares of the company’s stock valued at $192,110,000 after purchasing an additional 22,900 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Echostar during the 4th quarter valued at about $182,111,000. 33.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on ECHO. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Echostar in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $126.00 target price for the company. Williams Trading set a $155.00 price target on shares of Echostar in a report on Monday, May 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $137.00 price target on shares of Echostar in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Echostar from $129.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings assumed coverage on Echostar in a research report on Monday, July 6th. They issued a “sell (d-)” rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $136.25.

Echostar Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ECHO opened at $84.09 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.68 and a beta of 1.03. Echostar CORP has a fifty-two week low of $26.04 and a fifty-two week high of $147.25.

Echostar (NASDAQ:ECHO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, May 9th. The company reported ($0.51) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Echostar had a negative net margin of 97.56% and a negative return on equity of 4.80%. The company had revenue of $3.67 billion for the quarter. Research analysts expect that Echostar CORP will post -1.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Hamid Akhavan sold 52,586 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.00, for a total value of $6,362,906.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 865,633 shares in the company, valued at approximately $104,741,593. This trade represents a 5.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 55.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Echostar Company Profile

EchoStar Corporation is a communications company that provides satellite and wireless services, video distribution, and broadband connectivity solutions. Its business has historically been centered on satellite technology and related services, serving customers through a range of connectivity and network offerings.

The company operates through several segments that support pay-TV, enterprise, government, and consumer communications needs. Its services and technologies have included satellite television distribution, broadband satellite access, network infrastructure, and wireless communications capabilities.

EchoStar was founded in 1980 and has long been associated with satellite communications in the United States.