Picton Mahoney Asset Management Invests $4.33 Million in Viasat Inc. $VSAT

Picton Mahoney Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 147,649 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,326,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management owned 0.11% of Viasat as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Viasat by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 16,962,958 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $497,015,000 after purchasing an additional 1,289,024 shares during the period. OCO Capital Partners L.P. raised its position in Viasat by 60.0% in the 2nd quarter. OCO Capital Partners L.P. now owns 6,000,000 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $87,600,000 after buying an additional 2,250,000 shares during the last quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN raised its position in Viasat by 15.8% in the 2nd quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN now owns 5,845,100 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $85,338,000 after buying an additional 796,349 shares during the last quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC lifted its stake in Viasat by 6.8% in the 2nd quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 5,541,636 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $80,908,000 after acquiring an additional 351,404 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in Viasat by 38.5% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,713,581 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $108,808,000 after acquiring an additional 1,033,194 shares during the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Viasat news, CEO Mark D. Dankberg sold 200,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.09, for a total value of $7,018,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,534,993 shares in the company, valued at $53,862,904.37. The trade was a 11.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Shawn Lynn Duffy sold 51,480 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total transaction of $1,872,842.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 6,021 shares in the company, valued at $219,043.98. The trade was a 89.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 354,290 shares of company stock valued at $13,059,722. 2.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on VSAT shares. Morgan Stanley set a $51.00 price objective on shares of Viasat in a report on Friday, January 16th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Viasat in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viasat in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Viasat from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $36.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Viasat in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.86.

Viasat Trading Down 4.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:VSAT opened at $45.53 on Friday. Viasat Inc. has a 52-week low of $7.36 and a 52-week high of $50.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a current ratio of 2.13. The company has a market capitalization of $6.18 billion, a P/E ratio of -17.58 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $43.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $36.85.

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.