AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) Shares Gap Up - Still a Buy?

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $40.10, but opened at $41.31. AST SpaceMobile shares last traded at $43.25, with a volume of 4,389,641 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ASTS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Monday, May 5th. They set a "market perform" rating on the stock. Roth Capital assumed coverage on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $42.00 price target for the company. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of AST SpaceMobile from $31.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $30.00 target price on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Scotiabank lowered their price objective on AST SpaceMobile from $47.90 to $45.40 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AST SpaceMobile has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $43.73.

AST SpaceMobile Stock Up 10.6%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 10.62 and a quick ratio of 10.62. The company has a market capitalization of $14.04 billion, a PE ratio of -22.29 and a beta of 2.02. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $26.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $25.44.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported ($0.20) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.85 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -0.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, President Scott Wisniewski sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.65, for a total transaction of $1,782,500.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 545,595 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,450,461.75. This represents a 8.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 55,000 shares of AST SpaceMobile stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.82, for a total value of $1,475,100.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 184,250 shares of company stock valued at $6,146,750. Company insiders own 34.15% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AST SpaceMobile

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Voya Investment Management LLC raised its stake in AST SpaceMobile by 1,992.5% in the first quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 843,554 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,182,000 after buying an additional 803,240 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio purchased a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the 1st quarter valued at about $168,000. Belpointe Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the 1st quarter valued at about $900,000. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in AST SpaceMobile by 36.2% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 84,069 shares of the company's stock worth $1,912,000 after purchasing an additional 22,358 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in AST SpaceMobile by 18.1% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 325,621 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,405,000 after purchasing an additional 49,811 shares in the last quarter. 60.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.