AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS) Receives Average Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Key Points

• AST SpaceMobile, Inc. has received an average rating of "Hold" from analysts, with a consensus price target of approximately $45.98.
• Recent insider transactions included the CFO selling 20,000 shares at an average price of $52.48, indicating a 4.79% decrease in their stock position.
• Institutional investors own around 60.95% of AST SpaceMobile's stock, with notable new positions from Rakuten Group Inc. and Alphabet Inc. during the first quarter.

Shares of AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) have received a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the nine brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $45.9833.

ASTS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Zacks Research raised shares of AST SpaceMobile from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. William Blair initiated coverage on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $55.00 price objective for the company. B. Riley reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $44.00 target price (up previously from $36.00) on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a report on Monday, June 16th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of AST SpaceMobile from $38.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Andrew Martin Johnson sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.48, for a total value of $1,049,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 397,485 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $20,860,012.80. This represents a 4.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Shanti B. Gupta sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.08, for a total transaction of $541,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 315,667 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,389,265.36. This trade represents a 4.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 149,250 shares of company stock worth $5,721,250. 34.15% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ASTS. Rakuten Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the 1st quarter valued at about $705,398,000. Alphabet Inc. bought a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the 1st quarter valued at about $203,375,000. Voya Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 1,992.5% in the 1st quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 843,554 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,182,000 after acquiring an additional 803,240 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the 1st quarter valued at about $14,750,000. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the 2nd quarter valued at about $21,754,000. Institutional investors own 60.95% of the company's stock.

AST SpaceMobile Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of ASTS stock opened at $42.41 on Friday. AST SpaceMobile has a 1 year low of $17.50 and a 1 year high of $60.95. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $49.40 and a 200-day moving average price of $35.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 8.23 and a quick ratio of 8.23. The company has a market cap of $15.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -22.44 and a beta of 2.43.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 11th. The company reported ($0.41) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.19) by ($0.22). AST SpaceMobile had a negative net margin of 7,213.90% and a negative return on equity of 26.81%. The business had revenue of $1.16 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.37 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that AST SpaceMobile will post -0.4 earnings per share for the current year.

AST SpaceMobile Company Profile

AST SpaceMobile, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, develops and provides access to a space-based cellular broadband network for smartphones in the United States. Its SpaceMobile service provides cellular broadband services to end-users who are out of terrestrial cellular coverage. The company was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in Midland, Texas.

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