AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) Shares Up 1.4% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• AST SpaceMobile's share price increased by 1.4%, trading at around $55.03, despite a significant drop in trading volume, with only 1.64 million shares changing hands.
• Equities analysts have given AST SpaceMobile a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $45.34, with five analysts recommending a buy.
• The company reported a significant earnings miss for the quarter, with a EPS of ($0.20), falling short of the consensus estimate of ($0.17).

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report)'s stock price shot up 1.4% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $55.47 and last traded at $55.03. 1,640,492 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 86% from the average session volume of 12,137,501 shares. The stock had previously closed at $54.29.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ASTS. Oppenheimer began coverage on AST SpaceMobile in a report on Monday, May 5th. They set a "market perform" rating on 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 research note on Monday, June 16th. Scotiabank restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $45.40 target price on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Bank of America began coverage on AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $55.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Roth Capital began coverage on AST SpaceMobile in a report on Thursday, April 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $42.00 target price on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $45.34.

AST SpaceMobile Trading Up 1.8%

The company has a current ratio of 10.62, a quick ratio of 10.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.13 billion, a P/E ratio of -27.19 and a beta of 2.27. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $43.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $31.27.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported ($0.20) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.17) by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $0.72 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.85 million. AST SpaceMobile had a negative net margin of 7,033.22% and a negative return on equity of 23.56%. On average, analysts anticipate that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -0.4 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AST SpaceMobile

In other AST SpaceMobile news, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 4,250 shares of AST SpaceMobile stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.60, for a total value of $147,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 20,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $717,950. The trade was a 17.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, President Scott Wisniewski sold 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.65, for a total value of $1,782,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president directly owned 545,595 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,450,461.75. This trade represents a 8.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 184,250 shares of company stock valued at $6,146,750. 34.15% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AST SpaceMobile

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 25.2% in the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,826 shares of the company's stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 367 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 2.4% in the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 16,641 shares of the company's stock valued at $759,000 after buying an additional 392 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 61.9% during the 1st quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 1,321 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 505 shares during the last quarter. waypoint wealth counsel lifted its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. waypoint wealth counsel now owns 16,746 shares of the company's stock valued at $783,000 after buying an additional 565 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. lifted its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 10,244 shares of the company's stock valued at $233,000 after buying an additional 568 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.