AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) Stock Price Up 2.4% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• AST SpaceMobile's stock price increased by 2.4% to $67.76, with a notable trading volume of over 16 million shares.
• UBS Group downgraded the stock from a "buy" to a "neutral" rating, reducing the price target significantly from $62.00 to $43.00.
• Insider selling activity was observed, with CFO Andrew Johnson selling 20,000 shares, representing a 4.79% decrease in his ownership stake in the company.

Shares of AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) rose 2.4% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $68.80 and last traded at $67.76. Approximately 16,651,911 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 40% from the average daily volume of 11,878,256 shares. The stock had previously closed at $66.16.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ASTS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group downgraded AST SpaceMobile from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $62.00 to $43.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 9th. Roth Capital restated a "buy" rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. William Blair initiated coverage on AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Scotiabank dropped their price target on AST SpaceMobile from $45.40 to $42.90 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $45.27.

AST SpaceMobile Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $24.29 billion, a P/E ratio of -35.85 and a beta of 2.41. The business has a 50-day moving average of $48.21 and a 200-day moving average of $38.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 8.23 and a quick ratio of 8.23.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 11th. The company reported ($0.41) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.19) by ($0.22). The company had revenue of $1.16 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.37 million. AST SpaceMobile had a negative return on equity of 26.81% and a negative net margin of 7,213.90%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -0.4 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AST SpaceMobile news, CFO Andrew Martin Johnson sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.48, for a total value of $1,049,600.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 397,485 shares in the company, valued at $20,860,012.80. This trade represents a 4.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.58, for a total value of $1,623,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer owned 4,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $192,755. The trade was a 89.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 34.15% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AST SpaceMobile

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in AST SpaceMobile by 21.9% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,355 shares of the company's stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in AST SpaceMobile by 7.2% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 67,905 shares of the company's stock worth $3,173,000 after acquiring an additional 4,533 shares in the last quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. purchased a new position in AST SpaceMobile during the second quarter valued at approximately $142,000. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC increased its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 35.9% in the second quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 39,663 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,853,000 after buying an additional 10,487 shares in the last quarter. Finally, B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the second quarter valued at approximately $306,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.95% of the company's stock.

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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