Icahn Carl C Acquires New Stake in EchoStar Corporation $SATS

Icahn Carl C acquired a new position in shares of EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ:SATS) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 4,354,542 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $332,513,000. EchoStar makes up 3.6% of Icahn Carl C’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Icahn Carl C owned approximately 1.51% of EchoStar as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SATS. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of EchoStar by 575.2% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 35,321 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $2,697,000 after buying an additional 30,090 shares in the last quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of EchoStar during the 3rd quarter worth about $780,000. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in shares of EchoStar in the 3rd quarter worth $1,508,000. Hennessy Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of EchoStar in the 3rd quarter worth about $42,464,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in EchoStar by 13.1% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 208,982 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $5,789,000 after buying an additional 24,132 shares in the last quarter. 33.62% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on SATS shares. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of EchoStar in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of EchoStar in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Williams Trading set a $158.00 price target on shares of EchoStar in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on EchoStar from $97.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of EchoStar from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $82.00 to $110.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $134.17.

EchoStar Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:SATS opened at $108.34 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $115.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $92.26. 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. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.19 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.15 and a beta of 1.01.

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.