2. DISH Network Corporation (NASDAQ:DISH)
Year-to-Date Share Price Decline: 54.11%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 35
DISH Network Corporation (NASDAQ:DISH) provides pay-TV services in the United States. On May 8, DISH Network Corporation (NASDAQ:DISH) reported a Q1 GAAP EPS of $0.35 and a revenue of $3.96 billion, falling short of Wall Street consensus by $0.04 and $100 million, respectively. In the first quarter of 2023, there was a reduction of around 552,000 pay-TV subscribers for Pay-TVNet, compared to the decrease of approximately 462,000 subscribers in Q1 2022. DISH Network Corporation (NASDAQ:DISH) stock has plummeted by 54% year-to-date as of June 16, making it one of the worst performing S&P stocks.
On June 6, Benchmark downgraded DISH Network Corporation (NASDAQ:DISH) stock to Hold from Buy with a $7.30 price target. Benchmark analysts observed that rumors of a potential partnership between Dish and Amazon for discounted or free wireless services for Prime customers reflect the perceived potential of Dish’s network but have been denied by Amazon and major mobile network operators.
According to Insider Monkey’s first quarter database, 35 hedge funds were long DISH Network Corporation (NASDAQ:DISH), compared to 37 funds in the prior quarter. Boykin Curry’s Eagle Capital Management is the largest position holder in the company, with nearly 15 million shares worth $139.6 million.
Here is what ClearBridge Investments has to say about DISH Network Corporation (NASDAQ:DISH) in its Q2 2021 investor letter:
“Portfolio holdings in the communication services and financial sectors also made strong contributions. Dish Network continues to make progress on the buildout of its greenfield 5G network, with Las Vegas slated to become the first market launched later this year. The company gained credibility, and its stock reacted favorably, after it announced a partnership with Amazon to deploy a 5G cloud-native network using AWS’s cloud infrastructure. While the stock has been volatile in recent quarters, we continue to feel confident in Dish’s long-term prospects, which include competing as a fourth U.S. wireless carrier. Charter Communications has been executing well and benefiting from the growth in residential broadband, which has been accelerated by COVID-19 and should see further support from the Biden Administration’s infrastructure bill, which earmarks $65 billion for broadband buildout. In addition, we expect the company to continue to grow its wireless business, leveraging its mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) relationship with Verizon. The company continues to generate strong and growing free cash flow and deploys it toward consistent and material share buybacks.”
