AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) Shares Up 5.9% - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• AST SpaceMobile shares rose 5.9% on Tuesday, trading as high as $77.69 after closing at $73.19 the prior day. Volume was lighter than usual, with about 10.0 million shares traded versus an average of 18.5 million.
• The company announced that BlueBird satellites 11, 12, and 13 are targeted for launch in the first half of August, signaling continued progress on its space-based cellular broadband network and direct-to-cell strategy.
• Despite the positive launch update, investor concerns remain due to a CEO-linked entity filing to sell nearly $183 million of shares, along with analyst caution and recent insider selling. Wall Street’s consensus rating is currently “Reduce” with a target price of $81.33.

Shares of AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) rose 5.9% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $77.69 and last traded at $77.4840. 10,046,173 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 46% from the average session volume of 18,472,375 shares. The stock had previously closed at $73.19.

AST SpaceMobile News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: AST SpaceMobile announced that BlueBird satellites 11, 12, and 13 are targeted to launch in the first half of August, reinforcing execution progress on its space-based cellular broadband network. AST SpaceMobile Announces BlueBirds 11, 12, and 13 Orbital Launch in the First Half of August
• Positive Sentiment: Some commentary remains optimistic on ASTS’s long-term addressable market, with one analysis arguing its direct-to-cell technology and commercial agreements could support major upside if it can scale successfully. AST SpaceMobile: My Bet On The New Telecommunications Order
• Neutral Sentiment: A speculative article suggested AST SpaceMobile could eventually reach $100, but this is a forecast rather than a concrete business development. Prediction: AST SpaceMobile Will Hit $100 on This Date
• Negative Sentiment: Stocktwits reported that a CEO-linked entity, AA Gables 2, filed to sell nearly $183 million of AST SpaceMobile shares, which can raise dilution and supply concerns for investors. ASTS Stock Slides Overnight: CEO-Linked Entity Files To Sell Shares Worth Nearly $183M
• Negative Sentiment: Jim Cramer said AST SpaceMobile is “on the miss cycle,” adding to concerns that the company may still be facing execution or expectation risks after recent weakness. Jim Cramer on AST SpaceMobile: “This One Right Now Is on the Miss Cycle”
• Negative Sentiment: Recent market coverage highlighted that ASTS had already suffered a sizable decline over the prior session and recent weeks, reflecting elevated volatility and investor caution. AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (ASTS) Suffers a Larger Drop Than the General Market: Key Insights

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ASTS has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of AST SpaceMobile from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $117.00 to $106.00 in a report on Friday, May 29th. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $108.00 target price on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. New Street Research set a $106.00 target price on AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, B. Riley Financial raised their price objective on AST SpaceMobile from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $81.33.

AST SpaceMobile Trading Up 4.3%

The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $89.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $89.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 18.47 and a quick ratio of 18.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -42.59 and a beta of 2.70.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 11th. The company reported ($0.66) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.23) by ($0.43). AST SpaceMobile had a negative net margin of 573.67% and a negative return on equity of 24.87%. The company had revenue of $14.73 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.01 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.20) EPS. AST SpaceMobile's revenue for the quarter was up 1952.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -1.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AST SpaceMobile

In related news, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.37, for a total value of $3,854,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 34,750 shares in the company, valued at $3,348,857.50. This represents a 53.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Julio A. Torres sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.34, for a total value of $1,145,100.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 43,239 shares in the company, valued at $3,300,865.26. The trade was a 25.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 3,145,809 shares of company stock worth $280,645,292 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 20.89% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ASTS. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in AST SpaceMobile by 7.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,488,180 shares of the company's stock worth $1,560,687,000 after acquiring an additional 1,568,292 shares during the last quarter. Vodafone Ventures Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the fourth quarter valued at about $397,413,000. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 44.0% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,661,551 shares of the company's stock valued at $338,569,000 after purchasing an additional 1,425,199 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,522,549 shares of the company's stock valued at $328,749,000 after purchasing an additional 402,505 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its holdings in AST SpaceMobile by 9.7% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,951,685 shares of the company's stock worth $287,011,000 after purchasing an additional 350,690 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.95% of the company's stock.

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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