Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Grows Stock Holdings in EchoStar Corporation $SATS

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS) by 1,625.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 48,670 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 45,850 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in EchoStar were worth $5,290,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of EchoStar by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,933 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $536,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of EchoStar by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 5,618 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $611,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in shares of EchoStar by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,800 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $196,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC lifted its position in shares of EchoStar by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC now owns 30,118 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $3,274,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CoreCap Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of EchoStar during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. 33.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

EchoStar Price Performance

Shares of SATS opened at $124.64 on Friday. EchoStar Corporation has a 1-year low of $14.90 and a 1-year high of $147.25. The stock has a market cap of $36.12 billion, a PE ratio of -2.49 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.17, a current ratio of 0.30 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $125.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $112.75.

EchoStar (NASDAQ:SATS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, May 9th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.51) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.48) by ($0.03). EchoStar had a negative net margin of 97.56% and a negative return on equity of 4.80%. The company had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.65 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.71) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that EchoStar Corporation will post -3.79 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research cut shares of EchoStar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of EchoStar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 16th. New Street Research assumed coverage on shares of EchoStar in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $161.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of EchoStar in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Williams Trading set a $155.00 price target on shares of EchoStar in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Four 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $137.14.

EchoStar 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.