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

Key Points

• AST SpaceMobile's stock gapped down from $72.90 to $67.41 after Scotiabank downgraded its rating from sector perform to sector underperform.
• The company reported a net loss of ($0.41) per share for the last quarter, missing analysts' estimates of ($0.19) by ($0.22), and generated revenue of only $1.16 million compared to the expected $6.37 million.
• Insider trading activity included CFO Andrew Johnson selling 20,000 shares at $52.48, representing a 4.79% decrease in his position, while institutional investors hold 60.95% of the stock.

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday after Scotiabank downgraded the stock from a sector perform rating to a sector underperform rating. The stock had previously closed at $72.90, but opened at $67.41. AST SpaceMobile shares last traded at $70.58, with a volume of 6,115,638 shares changing hands.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. B. Riley restated 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. Zacks Research upgraded shares of AST SpaceMobile from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a report on Saturday, September 27th. William Blair initiated coverage on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a report on Thursday, August 21st. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Finally, UBS Group lowered shares of AST SpaceMobile from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $62.00 to $43.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 9th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $45.27.

Insider Activity

In other AST SpaceMobile news, CFO Andrew Martin Johnson sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief financial officer owned 397,485 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,860,012.80. This trade represents a 4.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.58, for a total transaction of $1,623,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer owned 4,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $192,755. This trade represents a 89.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 41.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Rakuten Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $705,398,000. Alphabet Inc. bought a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $203,375,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,266,315 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,796,000 after acquiring an additional 33,259 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 888,654 shares of the company's stock valued at $20,208,000 after acquiring an additional 34,591 shares during the period. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 1,992.5% during 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 period. 60.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AST SpaceMobile Stock Down 1.3%

The stock's 50-day moving average price is $48.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $38.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.78 billion, a P/E ratio of -37.78 and a beta of 2.41. The company has a current ratio of 8.23, a quick ratio of 8.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 11th. The company reported ($0.41) earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $1.16 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.37 million. As a group, research analysts expect that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -0.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About AST SpaceMobile

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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