AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS) have earned an average rating of “Hold” from the eleven research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $87.60.

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on ASTS shares. Scotiabank raised AST SpaceMobile from a “sector underperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and set a $50.80 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered AST SpaceMobile from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $117.00 to $106.00 in a report on Friday, May 29th. Barclays lifted their price target on AST SpaceMobile from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, B. Riley Financial upgraded AST SpaceMobile from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 17th.

Insider Activity

In related news, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.37, for a total value of $3,854,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 34,750 shares in the company, valued at $3,348,857.50. The trade was a 53.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Julio A. Torres sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.34, for a total transaction of $1,145,100.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 43,239 shares in the company, valued at $3,300,865.26. This trade represents a 25.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 105,809 shares of company stock valued at $9,748,492 in the last three months. 20.89% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vodafone Ventures Ltd purchased a new position in AST SpaceMobile during the fourth quarter worth approximately $397,413,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $198,270,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 7.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,488,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,560,687,000 after buying an additional 1,568,292 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 44.0% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,661,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $338,569,000 after buying an additional 1,425,199 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth raised its stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 8,016.7% during the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 1,269,609 shares of the company’s stock worth $92,000,000 after buying an additional 1,253,967 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.95% of the company’s stock.

AST SpaceMobile Price Performance

NASDAQ:ASTS opened at $58.98 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 18.47 and a quick ratio of 18.37. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $81.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $87.26. AST SpaceMobile has a 1-year low of $36.08 and a 1-year high of $133.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.89 billion, a P/E ratio of -33.13 and a beta of 2.76.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 11th. The company reported ($0.66) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.23) by ($0.43). The business had revenue of $14.73 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.01 million. AST SpaceMobile had a negative net margin of 573.67% and a negative return on equity of 24.87%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1952.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.20) earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that AST SpaceMobile will post -1.38 EPS for the current year.

AST SpaceMobile News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting AST SpaceMobile this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AST SpaceMobile is preparing to launch three BlueBird satellites on August 5. A successful mission could expand coverage in priority markets, support the company’s delayed network rollout, and strengthen its position in direct-to-smartphone connectivity. AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (ASTS) Stock: Slightly Surges as Three BlueBird Satellites Raise the Stakes
• Positive Sentiment: The company has reportedly secured its next launch for its large BlueBird satellites, again working with a major launch partner. Additional launch capacity would help AST SpaceMobile build out its planned global cellular network. AST SpaceMobile Locks In Next Launch For Its Mega Satellites
• Positive Sentiment: Scotiabank raised AST SpaceMobile to “Sector Perform,” indicating a more constructive view of the shares after their recent decline, although the rating is not an outright bullish recommendation. AST SpaceMobile Raised to Sector Perform at Scotiabank
• Neutral Sentiment: Several comparisons with Rocket Lab and Intuitive Machines highlight AST SpaceMobile’s differentiated strategy: providing broadband cellular service to ordinary, unmodified smartphones. The articles are opinion-based and do not represent new company-specific developments. AST SpaceMobile vs. Rocket Lab
• Negative Sentiment: Pomerantz LLP is investigating potential claims on behalf of AST SpaceMobile investors. Such announcements can create legal and reputational overhang, though the investigation does not establish wrongdoing. Pomerantz Law Firm Investigates Claims
• Negative Sentiment: Broader selling in space stocks and AST SpaceMobile’s steep recent decline continue to signal high volatility and investor caution. The company also faces competitive pressure from Starlink while it scales its network. SpaceX Is Now Down 36% in a Month

AST SpaceMobile Company Profile

AST SpaceMobile is a U.S.-based aerospace company developing a space-based cellular broadband network designed to connect standard mobile phones and other devices directly to satellites. The company’s core proposition is “space-to-cell” service: operating a constellation of low-Earth-orbit (LEO) satellites equipped with large, high-power phased-array antennas to provide wide-area mobile broadband without requiring users to buy specialized terminals or handset modifications.

AST SpaceMobile designs, builds and operates satellite payloads and supporting ground infrastructure.