Why EchoStar Stock Was Topping the Market on Tuesday

Key Points

• According to a media report, the satellite company is in talks to sell some of its wireless spectrum.

• The apparent would-be buyer is a big name in the telecom field.

• 10 stocks we like better than EchoStar ›

EchoStar (NASDAQ: SATS) stock was bouncing higher on the second trading day of the week, thanks in no small part to speculation that a giant peer might be snapping up some of its wireless spectrum. Near market close, EchoStar's shares were rising by almost 4% at a time when the S&P 500 index was floating 0.3% higher.

A possible deal worth around $10 billion

According to a report published by Bloomberg after market close Monday and updated Tuesday morning, EchoStar is currently in discussions to divest some of its wireless telephony spectrum to Verizon Communications.

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Citing unidentified "people familiar with the situation," the talks focus on EchoStar's AWS-3 spectrum licenses. These have notable value, as they are ideal for 5G technology. Bloomberg said that EchoStar has placed a carrying value of $9.8 billion on these assets.

The company has been an eager seller of spectrum recently, inking deals for such assets with Elon Musk's SpaceX and AT&T. EchoStar's CEO Hamid Akhavan has said his company is abandoning its previous ambition to build a sprawling wireless network. It operates a telecom, Boost Mobile, but aims to use a hybrid model in collaboration with AT&T for the brand's network.

No official word yet

Neither EchoStar nor Verizon has yet officially commented on the Bloomberg article, and they are not likely to if discussions are indeed ongoing. Another spectrum sale would be entirely in character for EchoStar, but we do need to be cautious here, as such a deal is only speculation at this point.

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Eric Volkman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Verizon Communications. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.