Viasat Faces Raymond James 'Reduce' as Shares Rally to $64.92; ViaSat-3 F3 Launch Set
Raymond James downgraded Viasat to Reduce while the stock rallied to a 52-week high of $64.92 on April 20 with a 2.05% gain and 810% surge in call option volume. Viasat is set to launch its final ViaSat-3 F3 satellite on April 27 via Falcon Heavy to add over 1 Tbps throughput for the Asia-Pacific region.
1. Analyst Downgrade vs Stock Rally
On April 20, Raymond James confirmed a Reduce rating for Viasat, with the stock trading at $63.98. Despite the cautious outlook, shares jumped 2.05% to reach a 52-week high of $64.92, supported by a dramatic 810% increase in call option volume as traders bought over 41,000 contracts.
2. Overvaluation and Insider Selling
Valuation metrics from GuruFocus place Viasat at a 228% premium to its $18.27 estimated intrinsic value and assign a GF Score of 58 out of 100. Meanwhile, insiders have sold $3.7 million in shares over the past three months, including $134,000 by the Chief Accounting Officer, raising questions about internal confidence.
3. ViaSat-3 F3 Launch Details
Viasat will launch its final ViaSat-3 F3 satellite on April 27 aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center. The satellite aims to deliver over 1 Tbps of throughput across the Asia-Pacific region, with in-orbit testing followed by service entry expected by late summer 2026.