Icahn Carl C Buys Shares of 4,354,542 EchoStar Corporation $SATS

Icahn Carl C purchased a new position in shares of EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS) during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 4,354,542 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $332,513,000. EchoStar accounts for approximately 3.6% of Icahn Carl C’s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of SATS. Foursixthree Capital LP acquired a new position in EchoStar in the 3rd quarter worth $45,672,000. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. acquired a new position in EchoStar during the third quarter worth $321,000. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP raised its holdings in shares of EchoStar by 693.4% in the 3rd quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 105,750 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $8,075,000 after purchasing an additional 92,422 shares during the period. Clearline Capital LP bought a new stake in EchoStar in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,983,000. Finally, Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC bought a new stake in EchoStar in the 3rd quarter valued at $4,187,000. 33.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

EchoStar Price Performance

SATS stock opened at $108.34 on Monday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $115.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $92.26. The firm has a market cap of $31.19 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.15 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21. EchoStar Corporation has a 12 month low of $14.90 and a 12 month high of $132.25.

Insider Activity at EchoStar

In related news, COO John Swieringa sold 50,088 shares of EchoStar stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.58, for a total value of $5,688,995.04. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 253,535 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,796,505.30. This trade represents a 16.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Hamid Akhavan sold 71,005 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.52, for a total transaction of $7,634,457.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 823,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $88,520,463.36. This represents a 7.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 55.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on SATS shares. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of EchoStar in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of EchoStar from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $82.00 to $110.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Williams Trading set a $158.00 price target on shares of EchoStar in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of EchoStar in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on EchoStar from $97.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price 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.