ViaSat Inc

Viasat Inc., through its subsidiary Inmarsat Government, Inc., was awarded the U.S. Space Force's MECS2 contract in September 2026, securing an initial US$42 million task order under a seven-year Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity agreement with a ceiling of up to US$307 million to provide fully managed global SATCOM services for the U.S. Marine Corps. The award deepens Viasat's role in secure, multi-orbit government communications and highlights the importance of its ViaSat-3-enabled Ka-band network and 24x7 managed services capabilities. The company's narrative projects $5.5 billion revenue and $626.3 million earnings by 2029, with forecasts yielding a $103.94 fair value, a 44% upside to its current price. Some of the lowest ranked analysts were far more cautious, assuming only about 3.9 percent annual revenue growth and continued losses. The MECS2 award looks incrementally positive for the investment thesis, reinforcing defense demand and multi-orbit capabilities, but it does not by itself resolve near term pressure from high ViaSat-3 and Inmarsat capex or the risk that broadband subscriber declines keep weighing on revenue quality.

Rocket Lab has secured $1.94 billion through an at-the-market share sale to fund its planned Iridium acquisition, replacing a planned $3.6 billion bridge facility and reducing its need for debt financing at the cost of a higher share count. The company also added to its order pipeline with a $190 million award for 20 HASTE hypersonic test flights and a separate $266 million Space Force contract covering at least 12 suborbital missions, and it was selected by Viasat to provide a satellite bus for a protected communications program. Rocket Lab has completed 96 Electron launches, including 17 missions this year. Raymond James initiated coverage with an $80 price target, citing growth opportunities and a potential path toward positive EBITDA and free cash flow by 2027 or 2028, though the company still reports negative free cash flow and operating losses. Shares climbed about 2% Tuesday as investors weighed the defense awards, satellite work and financing progress.

Viasat, Inc. announced that its ViaSat-3 F2 satellite has entered service across the Americas, completing the ViaSat-3 constellation and significantly expanding the company's network capacity, flexibility and resilience in the region. The satellite is designed to provide more than one terabit per second of throughput capacity over the Americas, with advanced beamforming technology that dynamically allocates capacity to high-demand flight routes, shipping lanes and geographic regions. With ViaSat-3 F1 already in service and F3 entering service across Asia-Pacific in August, completion of the ViaSat-3 constellation has tripled the bandwidth available across Viasat's global fleet, supporting its aviation, maritime, government and broadband customers. Chairman and CEO Mark Dankberg called the milestone a major step for Viasat and its customers, saying the VS3 satellites are the most advanced commercial satellites in the world in terms of adaptive beam forming, user performance and resilience to interference, and that the technology sets new commercial standards for solar power generation and thermal dissipation. Viasat, based in Carlsbad, California, completed its acquisition of Inmarsat in May 2023.

L2 Aviation and Gotonomi announced a strategic partnership to advance integrated satellite connectivity solutions for uncrewed aerial vehicle and Advanced Air Mobility operators throughout North America. The collaboration combines L2 Aviation's avionics integration and certification expertise with Gotonomi's compact satellite communications technology, enabling reliable command and control, telemetry, and mission data connectivity in areas where cellular, Wi-Fi, and other terrestrial networks are limited or unavailable. The planned solutions will use Gotonomi's lightweight UAV communications technology and access to Viasat's Velaris ecosystem, a satellite service developed for UAV and AAM operations. L2 Aviation joined the Viasat Velaris ecosystem through Galaxy 1 Communications in May 2026, bringing nearly three decades of avionics integration and certification experience to the uncrewed aviation market. The partnership aims to provide a complete aircraft-level solution from system architecture and installation through regulatory approval and operational deployment, with particular opportunities in the energy and government sectors for Beyond Visual Line of Sight operations.

Rocket Lab has secured a prime position on the US Space Force NITE-STAR IDIQ contract, making it eligible to compete for task orders in a nearly US$1 billion advanced space test infrastructure program. The company was also selected by Viasat to build a secure mini-GEO satellite bus for the Protected Tactical SATCOM-Global military communications constellation. Both awards expand Rocket Lab's role in US defense and space operations and create the potential for substantial multi-year revenue opportunities in secure government space systems.

The U.S. Space Force has awarded five $12 million contracts under a $60 million effort to prove non-SpaceX satellites can plug into the Space Data Network backbone that SpaceX built under a $2.29 billion award in May 2026. The move comes as SpaceX completed its 100th launch of 2026, pushing the Starlink constellation past 11,000 satellites. L3Harris Technologies, AST SpaceMobile, Rocket Lab, Viasat, and Iridium Communications are directly positioned to benefit from the Pentagon's push to avoid single-vendor dependency in space. Rocket Lab's $8 billion all-stock acquisition of Iridium, announced June 28 and targeted to close mid-2027, would create the only vertically integrated public SpaceX alternative, folding in 66 operational satellites and roughly $870 million in annual revenue.

Viasat reported first-quarter fiscal 2027 revenue of $1.2 billion, down approximately 1 percent, and a net loss of $52 million, while adjusted EBITDA fell 7 percent to $381 million. The company generated positive free cash flow of $72 million, up 19 percent, driven by operating cash flow of $291 million. Management kept its full-year outlook unchanged, expecting mid-single-digit revenue growth, flat to slightly higher adjusted EBITDA, capital expenditures between $950 million and $1 billion, and about $180 million in free cash flow. Backlog rose nearly 19 percent to $4.2 billion, with Communication Services up 13 percent and Defense and Advanced Technologies up 32 percent. ViaSat-3 Flight 3 completed reflector and boom deployment and entered in-orbit testing ahead of expected Asia-Pacific service entry in late August or early September.

ViaSat reported quarterly earnings of $0.17 per share, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.10 per share by 70%. Revenue for the quarter ended June 2026 came in at $1.16 billion, missing the consensus estimate by 3.55% and slightly below the year-ago figure of $1.17 billion. The company has beaten consensus EPS estimates in three of the last four quarters but has not topped revenue estimates over that same period. ViaSat shares have gained about 135.9% year-to-date, compared with an 11% rise in the S&P 500.

Viasat has completed a technology demonstration integrating satellite voice calling directly into a BMW iX3's infotainment system, showcasing how its L-band network could extend in-car connectivity beyond cellular coverage. The stock has surged 84.72% year to date to $69.51, with a one-year total shareholder return of 369.34%. A Simply Wall St narrative fair value estimate of $94.56 suggests the stock may be 26.5% undervalued, though bears point to ongoing losses and execution risk. The company is focused on operational efficiency, portfolio review, and integrating Inmarsat, with capital expenditures expected to peak with the ViaSat-3 program, potentially leading to positive free cash flow inflection and deleveraging.

A jury in the US District Court for the Western District of Texas returned a verdict on the 16th finding that semiconductor memory giant Kioxia Holdings infringed patents held by US satellite communications company Viasat. Reuters reports that the damages amount to approximately 229 million dollars, or 37 billion yen.

The Motley Fool compared Lumen Technologies and Viasat and concluded Viasat is the better buy for 2026. Lumen reported fiscal 2025 revenue of $12.4 billion, a 5% decline, and a net loss of nearly $1.7 billion, while carrying $13.25 billion in debt. Viasat posted fiscal 2026 revenue of roughly $4.6 billion, up 3%, with a narrower net loss of approximately $34 million and free cash flow of about $597 million. The analysis noted Viasat is better aligned with the trend toward satellite-based data services, while Lumen continues to struggle with legacy revenue declines and a heavy debt load.

Viasat has demonstrated the first satellite voice call fully integrated into a vehicle's infotainment system, using a BMW iX3 during the 5G Automotive Association Meeting Week in Munich. The demonstration combined Viasat's L-band satellite network with Qualcomm's Snapdragon Auto 5G Modem-RF Gen 2 solution, Cubic³'s eSIM capabilities, and the Fraunhofer IIS NESC AI voice codec to enable voice calls via the NB-IoT protocol directly through the BMW Group's in-vehicle architecture. This integration aims to provide reliable voice and messaging connectivity beyond the reach of traditional terrestrial networks, supporting emergency assistance and critical safety applications in remote areas. Viasat, BMW Group, Cubic³, and Fraunhofer IIS are all members of the 5GAA, which is working to develop scalable connectivity solutions for the automotive industry.

Viasat has received a prime contract from the US Space Force's Space Systems Command under the Protected Tactical SATCOM-Global program to develop, launch, and deliver the first of a proliferated fleet of small, maneuverable geosynchronous Earth orbit satellites. The multi-year contract tasks Viasat's Space and Mission Systems team with building and delivering a dual-band X/Ka-band mini-GEO satellite, along with ground stations and operational support. It also includes five years of satellite operations and sustainment services such as tracking, telemetry and command, satellite and network operations, and cybersecurity support. This Swarm 1 Delivery Order follows Viasat's successful completion of the Delivery Order 1 phase awarded in 2025, where the company matured a system design for a resilient, low size, weight and power GEO satellite and associated ground architecture.

Viasat shares have skyrocketed 417.8% over the past year, far outpacing the industry's growth of 44.1%, as the company benefits from rising global defense spending and increasing military reliance on digital connectivity. Viasat provides secure satellite communications, tactical data links, encrypted networks, and anti-jamming technologies for air, land, sea, and space platforms, serving defense agencies and military organizations worldwide. The company faces competition from Nokia, which is expanding secure 4G/5G military communication solutions, and Comtech, which offers satellite communication systems and secure network services for government customers. From a valuation standpoint, Viasat trades at a forward price-to-sales ratio of 2.13, below the industry tally of 5.17. Earnings estimates for 2027 have decreased 67.7% to 20 cents over the past 60 days, while the same for 2028 has decreased 38.8% to 41 cents, and Viasat currently carries a Zacks Rank of 4, indicating a Sell.

Viasat shares jumped 17.1% as investors speculated it could become a future acquisition target following Rocket Lab's $8 billion deal to buy Iridium Communications. Rocket Lab will pay cash and stock for Iridium, expanding into IoT, aviation, maritime, and PNT services. Viasat, a direct competitor to Iridium and SpaceX's Starlink, holds valuable wireless spectrum similar to Iridium's, which Rocket Lab's CEO highlighted as a key attraction. The space industry's consolidation to compete with SpaceX is fueling optimism that Viasat may be the next merger candidate.

FatPipe announced the general availability of SATBoost, a proprietary software solution that can increase throughput by up to 300% over LEO satellite connections without requiring additional bandwidth. The technology optimizes data flow for Starlink, Viasat, and Amazon LEO satellite links while addressing connectivity fluctuations caused by adverse weather. SATBoost integrates with FatPipe's existing multipath link aggregation and smart routing capabilities, allowing enterprises to combine multiple satellite links with terrestrial and 5G lines for a resilient, high-speed network. The software also includes data plan optimization features that steer traffic toward more cost-effective routes and use satellite connections only when necessary. Currently deployed across retail, healthcare, and government sectors, SATBoost ensures operational continuity through automatic failover to satellite links when primary connections like fiber or 5G fail.

A bullish thesis on Viasat, Inc. was published on TradersPro's Substack, emphasizing long-term structural growth from aviation connectivity and defense expansion. The thesis notes that following its integration of Inmarsat, Viasat has expanded its global satellite footprint and is positioned to benefit from accelerating demand for in-flight Wi-Fi, rising defense communications budgets, and the shift toward always-on global connectivity. Shares were trading at $62.45 as of June 16th, and the chart recently showed a confirmation bar with rising volume, signaling increased institutional participation. The thesis argues that continued execution on capacity expansion and airline contract wins could improve revenue visibility and margins, supporting a potential rerating as investors reassess the company's post-Inmarsat scale and long-term free cash flow potential.

Magnite and Viasat Aviation have partnered to bring programmatic advertising to in-flight Wi-Fi and entertainment screens. The collaboration, built on Viasat Ads, unlocks premium in-flight inventory through automated, data-driven buying, allowing advertisers to reach millions of travelers across Viasat's ecosystem of over 60 airlines and more than 4,000 aircraft. Magnite's programmatic infrastructure will enable seamless access to seat-back screens and personal devices, offering consistent ad formatting, reliable measurement, and brand-safe environments. Viasat Ads delivers dynamic ad targeting by route, destination, and events, while Magnite's platform provides scaled access to highly engaged audiences during extended periods of uninterrupted attention.