EchoStar (NASDAQ:SATS) COO John Swieringa Sells 50,088 Shares of Stock

EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS) COO John Swieringa sold 50,088 shares of EchoStar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.58, for a total value of $5,688,995.04. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 253,535 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,796,505.30. The trade was a 16.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

EchoStar Stock Performance

Shares of SATS opened at $106.24 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $30.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.11 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21. The business’s 50 day moving average is $115.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $88.93. EchoStar Corporation has a 52-week low of $14.90 and a 52-week high of $132.25.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On EchoStar

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in EchoStar by 301.9% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 79,182 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $8,654,000 after acquiring an additional 59,482 shares during the last quarter. Sentinel Dome Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of EchoStar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,218,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its position in EchoStar by 170.5% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,350 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $147,000 after purchasing an additional 851 shares during the period. Amanah Holdings Trust bought a new position in EchoStar during the 4th quarter worth $12,500,000. Finally, Attestor Capital Ltd bought a new position in EchoStar during the 4th quarter worth $48,806,000. Institutional investors own 33.62% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of EchoStar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of EchoStar from $97.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on EchoStar from $111.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. UBS Group increased their target price on EchoStar from $125.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of EchoStar in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $134.17.

About EchoStar

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.