EchoStar Corporation $SATS is Kite Lake Capital Management UK LLP’s Largest Position

Kite Lake Capital Management UK LLP lowered its holdings in EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS) by 3.7% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 644,452 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after selling 24,897 shares during the quarter. EchoStar makes up approximately 52.9% of Kite Lake Capital Management UK LLP’s holdings, making the stock its biggest holding. Kite Lake Capital Management UK LLP’s holdings in EchoStar were worth $49,210,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in shares of EchoStar by 575.2% in the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 35,321 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $2,697,000 after acquiring an additional 30,090 shares in the last quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of EchoStar in the third quarter valued at $780,000. Junto Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of EchoStar in the third quarter valued at $55,199,000. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in EchoStar in the third quarter valued at $1,508,000. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in EchoStar in the third quarter valued at $42,464,000. 33.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley upgraded EchoStar from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $82.00 to $110.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Zacks Research cut EchoStar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on EchoStar from $111.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Williams Trading set a $158.00 target price on shares of EchoStar in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of EchoStar in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $134.17.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO John Swieringa sold 50,088 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.58, for a total transaction of $5,688,995.04. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 253,535 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,796,505.30. This trade represents a 16.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Hamid Akhavan sold 71,005 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.52, for a total value of $7,634,457.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 823,293 shares in the company, valued at $88,520,463.36. This trade represents a 7.94% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 55.70% of the company’s stock.

EchoStar Stock Performance

NASDAQ:SATS opened at $114.33 on Tuesday. EchoStar Corporation has a 12 month low of $14.90 and a 12 month high of $132.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21, a current ratio of 0.42 and a quick ratio of 0.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.91 billion, a PE ratio of -2.27 and a beta of 1.01. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $115.60 and its 200 day moving average price is $92.66.

EchoStar Company Profile

EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ: SATS) is a global provider of satellite communication solutions, offering a suite of broadband and video delivery services to consumer, enterprise and government customers. The company operates two principal business segments: Broadband and Video. Through its Broadband segment, EchoStar delivers high-speed satellite internet access, managed network services and ground infrastructure for residential, commercial and rural markets. Its Video segment provides satellite fleet operations, teleport facilities and capacity-leasing services to video distributors and content providers.

In the Broadband segment, EchoStar’s Hughes Network Systems division designs and manufactures satellite broadband equipment, including user terminals and gateways, and develops advanced network management technologies.