EchoStar (NASDAQ:SATS) Shares Up 3.8% – Here’s What Happened

EchoStar Co. (NASDAQ:SATS) shares shot up 3.8% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $23.84 and last traded at $23.60. 264,965 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 78% from the average session volume of 1,207,171 shares. The stock had previously closed at $22.73.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on SATS. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of EchoStar in a research report on Monday, December 16th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $25.00 price target for the company. Raymond James downgraded shares of EchoStar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com raised shares of EchoStar to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 9th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of EchoStar from $37.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.50.

EchoStar Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $6.28 billion, a PE ratio of -2.52 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $23.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $22.17.

Insider Buying and Selling at EchoStar

In related news, Chairman Charles W. Ergen acquired 1,551,355 shares of EchoStar stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $28.04 per share, for a total transaction of $43,499,994.20. Following the purchase, the chairman now directly owns 1,551,355 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,499,994.20. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 55.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On EchoStar

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SATS. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of EchoStar by 24.4% in the 2nd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 19,848 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $353,000 after purchasing an additional 3,893 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers increased its stake in shares of EchoStar by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 390,077 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $6,947,000 after purchasing an additional 2,445 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in EchoStar by 68.0% in the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 42,141 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $751,000 after buying an additional 17,053 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in EchoStar by 7.9% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 35,316 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $629,000 after buying an additional 2,597 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Choreo LLC purchased a new stake in EchoStar in the 2nd quarter worth $186,000. 33.62% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About EchoStar

EchoStar Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides networking technologies and services worldwide. The company operates in four segments: Pay-TV, Retail Wireless, 5G Network Deployment, Broadband and Satellite Services. The Pay-TV segment offers a direct broadcast and fixed satellite services; designs, develops, and distributes receiver system; and provides digital broadcast operations, including satellite uplinking/downlinking, transmission and, other services to third-party pay-TV providers; and multichannel, live-linear and on-demand streaming over-the-top internet-based domestic, international, Latino, and Freestream video programming services under the DISH and SLING brand names.