The wholly owned subsidiary of Viasat, Inc. VSAT, Inmarsat Maritime, has been selected by Solvang, one of the world’s leading maritime transporters of LPG and petrochemicals, to upgrade its connectivity infrastructure across its gas carrier fleet. With deep expertise and a strong foundation of research and innovation spanning four decades, Inmarsat offers robust and innovative solutions that allow ship owners to stay connected and improve operational efficiency. Owing to these factors, Inmarsat is gaining solid market traction in the ever-evolving maritime industry.

In the recent agreement with Solvang, Inmarsat will offer its industry-leading NexusWave services. It is a fully managed service that leverages network bonding technology to support ever-changing connectivity demand regardless of the ship’s location and varied requirements. The solution integrates LEO (Low Earth Orbit), GEO (Geostationary Orbit), LTE (cellular technology) and L-band networks into a single bonded network to deliver high-speed connectivity with unparalleled worldwide coverage. With no hidden costs or unexpected changes in prices, it ensures greater transparency on the total cost of ownership.

NexusWave can deliver an upload speed of up to 80 mpbs and a download speed of up to 340 mbps. Its network availability exceeds 99.9%. Moreover, the solution dynamically adjusts traffic routing to maintain a consistent experience for crew members.

The Norway-based gas carrier Solvang operates a large shipping fleet. It includes eight large gas carriers, 13 very large gas carriers and six semi-refrigerated ethylene carriers. The deployment of Inmarsat NexusWave ensured robust connectivity across the fleet, seamlessly supporting its cloud-based applications with access to unlimited data and global coverage.

Will This Development Drive VSAT’s Share Performance?

The worldwide maritime trade is rapidly changing. Several enterprises across the shipping industry are steadily advancing their digital infrastructure. Growing usage of cloud-based applications, the need for seamless communication between ships, ports and logistic companies to streamline the supply chain and improvement in crew safety and welfare are driving demand for advanced maritime connectivity on board. This presents strong growth opportunity for Inmarsat. Inmarsat’s parent company, Viasat, is expected to gain from this market trend.

Additionally, Viasat is also taking several actions to future-proof the NexusWave solution and boost Inmarsat’s competitive edge. VSAT is set to integrate the Viasat-3 network with NexusWave to augment its capabilities. This bodes well for long-term growth.

VSAT’s Stock Price Performance

Shares of VSAT have lost 38.8% over the past year against the industry’s 44.4% growth.

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VSAT’s Zacks Rank & Key Picks

Viasat currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

InterDigital IDCC sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

In the trailing four quarters, it delivered an earnings surprise of 158.41%. It is a pioneer in advanced mobile technologies that enable wireless communications and capabilities. The company designs and develops a wide range of advanced technology solutions used in digital cellular, wireless 3G, 4G and IEEE 802-related products and networks.

United States Cellular Corporation USM currently flaunts a Zacks Rank of 1. In the last reported quarter, it delivered an earnings surprise of 150%.

U.S. Cellular has taken concrete steps to accelerate subscriber additions and improve churn management. The company aims to offer the best wireless experience to customers by providing superior quality network and national coverage. It is well-positioned to support the investment required for network enhancements, including the deployment of 5G technology.

Celestica Inc. CLS carries a Zacks Rank #2 at present.

The company provides competitive manufacturing technology and service solutions for printed circuit assembly and system assembly, as well as post-manufacturing support to many of the world's leading original equipment manufacturers.

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