AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) Shares Down 6.9% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Shares down 6.9% — AST SpaceMobile fell to about $71.88 on Tuesday; the stock has a market cap of $27.46B, negative EPS (PE -54.45), and an average analyst rating of "Reduce" with a $82.51 average price target.
• FCC approval for AST’s direct-to-device service is a major operational positive, keeping the company on track with partners like Google and AT&T and a stated target of reaching profitability by 2027.
• Significant insider selling — major shareholder Hiroshi Mikitani sold 1.69M shares and the CTO sold 40k, with insiders disposing of 3.08M shares (~$274M) in the past 90 days, which may heighten investor concerns about dilution or timing.

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) shares traded down 6.9% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $70.99 and last traded at $71.88. 15,082,267 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 2% from the average session volume of 15,448,843 shares. The stock had previously closed at $77.20.

AST SpaceMobile News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: FCC approval for AST’s direct-to-device service clears an important U.S. regulatory hurdle and keeps the company on track for commercial service with partner support (Google, AT&T) and a 2027 profitability target. This is a major operational positive for long-term revenue prospects. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: AST leads large-cap communication services in year-over-year capital expenditure growth, signaling aggressive investment into its space-based network — a sign management is funding buildout that could drive future subscriber and revenue growth. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Retail traders and some investors have shrugged off a large Rakuten share sale, which limited immediate dilution fears and helped the stock rally in recent sessions. That retail momentum can support short-term upside. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Management scheduled a Q1 2026 business update call for May 11; the event gives investors an opportunity to get updated guidance and execution detail but is neutral until new financials or guidance are provided. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Media pieces noting the stock’s recent outperformance are informational but don’t add new fundamental drivers; they reflect short-term momentum rather than changes in outlook. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Speculation about potential suitors or M&A interest has surfaced; such talk can buoy sentiment but is highly uncertain and should be viewed as speculative until concrete bids or processes appear. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: An analyst warned after-hours that any weakness at Starlink (a key competitor) could be “worse” for AST — the point: competitive problems at Starlink would likely magnify concerns about demand, pricing and execution for AST. That caution increases perceived risk and likely contributed to profit-taking and the intraday pullback. Article Title

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on ASTS shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Zacks Research raised AST SpaceMobile from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Barclays upped their price target on AST SpaceMobile from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. B. Riley Financial reduced their price target on AST SpaceMobile from $105.00 to $95.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Scotiabank cut AST SpaceMobile from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector underperform" rating and set a $45.60 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $82.51.

AST SpaceMobile Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $27.46 billion, a PE ratio of -54.45 and a beta of 2.81. The company has a 50 day moving average of $87.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $83.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 16.35 and a quick ratio of 16.27.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.18) by ($0.08). AST SpaceMobile had a negative return on equity of 23.02% and a negative net margin of 482.16%.The company had revenue of $54.31 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $39.53 million. AST SpaceMobile's quarterly revenue was up 2731.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 40,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.88, for a total transaction of $3,555,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 4,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at $422,180. This represents a 89.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Hiroshi Mikitani sold 1,690,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.42, for a total value of $154,499,800.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 29,330,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,681,362,770.10. The trade was a 5.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 3,080,000 shares of company stock worth $274,452,000. Corporate insiders own 30.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Ascentis Independent Advisors bought a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the first quarter valued at $384,000. Stephens Inc. AR bought a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the first quarter valued at $354,000. Praxis Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 16.7% during the first quarter. Praxis Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,417 shares of the company's stock valued at $615,000 after purchasing an additional 1,061 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 18.6% during the first quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,610 shares of the company's stock valued at $631,000 after purchasing an additional 1,195 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the first quarter valued at $205,000. 60.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About AST SpaceMobile

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.

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