Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz Buys Viasat, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) Shares

Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Florida) recently bought shares of Viasat, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT). In a filing disclosed on November 20th, the Representative disclosed that they had bought between $1,001 and $15,000 in Viasat stock on October 23rd.

Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz also recently made the following trade(s):

• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of New Gold (NYSE:NGD) on 11/18/2024.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) on 11/18/2024.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) on 10/23/2024.

Viasat Stock Performance

Shares of Viasat stock opened at $8.41 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.44. Viasat, Inc. has a 1 year low of $6.69 and a 1 year high of $29.11. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $10.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $14.34.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The communications equipment provider reported ($1.07) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.54) by ($0.53). Viasat had a negative net margin of 8.73% and a negative return on equity of 7.58%. The firm had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.11 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($6.16) earnings per share. Viasat’s revenue was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Viasat, Inc. will post -2.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VSAT. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its position in Viasat by 1.6% during the second quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 37,800 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $480,000 after buying an additional 600 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Viasat by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 16,455 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $209,000 after purchasing an additional 667 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its position in shares of Viasat by 8.3% in the second quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 13,044 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $166,000 after purchasing an additional 997 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of Viasat by 63.7% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,623 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 1,021 shares during the period. Finally, IMA Advisory Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Viasat by 3.1% during the second quarter. IMA Advisory Services Inc. now owns 40,775 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $518,000 after purchasing an additional 1,223 shares during the period. 86.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on VSAT. StockNews.com lowered Viasat from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 31st. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Viasat from $31.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Viasat from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $29.00 to $15.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their target price on Viasat from $28.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on Viasat from $24.00 to $9.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $18.33.

About Representative Wasserman Schultz

Debbie Wasserman Schultz (Democratic Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing Florida’s 25th Congressional District. She assumed office on January 3, 2023. Her current term ends on January 3, 2025. Wasserman Schultz (Democratic Party) is running for re-election to the U.S. House to represent Florida’s 25th Congressional District. She declared candidacy for the Democratic primary scheduled on August 20, 2024. Wasserman Schultz was first elected to the U.S. House in 2004 from District 20. She previously represented District 34 of the Florida State Senate from 2003 to 2004, District 32 of the Florida State Senate from 2001 to 2003, and District 97 of the Florida House of Representatives from 1993 to 2001. She served as one of the Chief Deputy Whips of the Democratic caucus for the 113th Congress. She also served as the chair of the Democratic National Committee. On July 24, 2016, Wasserman Schultz announced that she would resign her leadership position at the end of the party’s convention. Wasserman Schultz was considered a possible candidate in 2016 for U.S. Senate. However, she announced on March 17, 2015, that she would not seek the Senate seat and would instead run for re-election to the House. Debbie Wasserman Schultz was born in Forest Hills, New York. Wasserman Schultz graduated from Half Hollow Hills High School East in 1984. She earned a B.A. and M.A. from the University of Florida in 1988 and 1990, respectively. Wasserman Schultz’s career experience includes working as a staffer to former U.S. Representative Peter Deutsch.

Viasat Company Profile

Viasat, Inc provides broadband and communications products and services worldwide. The company's Satellite Services segment offers satellite-based fixed broadband services, including broadband internet access and voice over internet protocol services to consumers and businesses; in-flight entertainment and aviation software services to commercial airlines and private business jets; satellite-based connectivity services; mobile broadband services, including satellite-based internet services to energy offshore vessels, cruise ships, consumer ferries, and yachts; and energy services, which include ultra-secure solutions IP connectivity, bandwidth-optimized over-the-top applications, industrial internet-of-things big data enablement, and industry-leading machine learning analytics.