Leonteq Securities AG Invests $835,000 in Echostar CORP $ECHO

Leonteq Securities AG bought a new position in Echostar CORP (NASDAQ:ECHO) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 8,222 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $835,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Echostar by 6.0% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 26,805 shares of the company’s stock valued at $672,000 after purchasing an additional 1,511 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in Echostar by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 72,482 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,854,000 after buying an additional 3,199 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in Echostar by 8.1% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 331,476 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,479,000 after buying an additional 24,749 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in Echostar during the first quarter valued at about $128,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its stake in Echostar by 18.6% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 13,528 shares of the company’s stock valued at $377,000 after buying an additional 2,119 shares in the last quarter. 33.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Echostar

In other Echostar news, Director Stephen J. Bye sold 8,508 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.83, for a total value of $764,273.64. Following the transaction, the director owned 653 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,658.99. This represents a 92.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Hamid Akhavan sold 52,586 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.00, for a total transaction of $6,362,906.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 865,633 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $104,741,593. The trade was a 5.73% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Echostar Stock Down 0.9%

NASDAQ:ECHO opened at $91.68 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 5.12 and a current ratio of 5.20. Echostar CORP has a fifty-two week low of $26.52 and a fifty-two week high of $147.25. The stock has a market cap of $26.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.68 and a beta of 1.03.

Echostar (NASDAQ:ECHO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, May 9th. The company reported ($0.51) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter. Echostar had a negative return on equity of 1.28% and a negative net margin of 38.71%. As a group, research analysts expect that Echostar CORP will post -1.35 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ECHO. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Echostar from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $115.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 17th. New Street Research set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Echostar in a research note on Monday, June 15th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Echostar from $155.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Williams Trading set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Echostar in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings began coverage on shares of Echostar in a research note on Monday, July 6th. They set a “sell (d-)” rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $132.00.

Echostar 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.