EchoStar (NASDAQ:SATS) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

EchoStar Co. (NASDAQ:SATS)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $23.01, but opened at $22.51. EchoStar shares last traded at $23.17, with a volume of 49,650 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on SATS shares. Raymond James downgraded shares of EchoStar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com raised EchoStar to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, November 9th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on EchoStar from $37.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on EchoStar in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $25.00 price objective on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.50.

EchoStar Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $6.23 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.50 and a beta of 0.69. The business’s fifty day moving average is $23.95 and its 200 day moving average is $21.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

Insider Buying and Selling at EchoStar

In related news, Chairman Charles W. Ergen purchased 1,551,355 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $28.04 per share, for a total transaction of $43,499,994.20. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 1,551,355 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $43,499,994.20. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 55.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of EchoStar

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of EchoStar by 54.7% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,231 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 789 shares in the last quarter. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd acquired a new position in EchoStar in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $89,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in EchoStar in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $165,000. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new position in EchoStar during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $183,000. Finally, Choreo LLC acquired a new stake in EchoStar during the 2nd quarter valued at $186,000. 33.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About EchoStar

EchoStar Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides networking technologies and services worldwide. The company operates in four segments: Pay-TV, Retail Wireless, 5G Network Deployment, Broadband and Satellite Services. The Pay-TV segment offers a direct broadcast and fixed satellite services; designs, develops, and distributes receiver system; and provides digital broadcast operations, including satellite uplinking/downlinking, transmission and, other services to third-party pay-TV providers; and multichannel, live-linear and on-demand streaming over-the-top internet-based domestic, international, Latino, and Freestream video programming services under the DISH and SLING brand names.