AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) Shares Down 1.1% on Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• AST SpaceMobile's shares dropped by 1.1% after Scotiabank cut its price target from $45.40 to $42.90, maintaining a sector perform rating on the stock.
• A mix of ratings from various brokerages includes a "neutral" rating from Bank of America and a "buy" rating from B. Riley, indicating a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for the stock.
• Insider selling was noted with CTO Huiwen Yao and COO Shanti B. Gupta both offloading significant shares, contributing to over 184,250 shares sold in the last 90 days.

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report)'s share price fell 1.1% during trading on Friday after Scotiabank lowered their price target on the stock from $45.40 to $42.90. Scotiabank currently has a sector perform rating on the stock. AST SpaceMobile traded as low as $46.30 and last traded at $47.21. 3,100,079 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 11,989,723 shares. The stock had previously closed at $47.71.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on ASTS. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $55.00 price objective on the stock. B. Riley reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $44.00 price target (up from $36.00) on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Roth Capital initiated coverage on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $42.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Oppenheimer began coverage on AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Monday, May 5th. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $44.99.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AST SpaceMobile news, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 55,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total transaction of $1,475,100.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Shanti B. Gupta sold 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.08, for a total transaction of $541,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 315,667 shares in the company, valued at $11,389,265.36. The trade was a 4.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 184,250 shares of company stock worth $6,146,750. 34.15% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of AST SpaceMobile

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of ASTS. Flagship Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in AST SpaceMobile by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Flagship Private Wealth LLC now owns 9,106 shares of the company's stock worth $426,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 56,619 shares of the company's stock worth $2,646,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC lifted its stake in AST SpaceMobile by 25.2% in the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,826 shares of the company's stock valued at $85,000 after buying an additional 367 shares during the last quarter. Tsfg LLC grew its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 37.0% during the second quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 1,370 shares of the company's stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 16,641 shares of the company's stock worth $759,000 after acquiring an additional 392 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.95% of the company's stock.

AST SpaceMobile Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 10.62, a quick ratio of 10.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.82 billion, a P/E ratio of -23.56 and a beta of 2.33. The company's 50-day moving average is $45.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $32.32.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 12th. The company reported ($0.20) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.17) by ($0.03). AST SpaceMobile had a negative return on equity of 23.56% and a negative net margin of 7,033.22%. The business had revenue of $0.72 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.85 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -0.4 EPS for the current fiscal 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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