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

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report)'s stock price shot up 2.4% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $36.59 and last traded at $36.57. 3,693,322 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 70% from the average session volume of 12,294,574 shares. The stock had previously closed at $35.71.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ASTS. Scotiabank lowered their price target on shares of AST SpaceMobile from $47.90 to $45.40 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. 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 research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Monday, May 5th. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Finally, Roth Capital assumed coverage on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $42.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $42.40.

AST SpaceMobile Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $12.14 billion, a PE ratio of -18.10 and a beta of 2.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 5.80 and a current ratio of 5.80. The company's fifty day moving average price is $25.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $25.05.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 12th. The company reported ($0.20) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.17) by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $0.72 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.85 million. As a group, equities analysts expect that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -0.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at AST SpaceMobile

In related news, COO Shanti B. Gupta sold 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.08, for a total value of $541,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 315,667 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,389,265.36. This trade represents a 4.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 4,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.60, for a total transaction of $147,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer now owns 20,750 shares in the company, valued at $717,950. The trade was a 17.00% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 174,250 shares of company stock worth $5,728,350 in the last three months. Company insiders own 34.15% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 61.9% during the first quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 1,321 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in AST SpaceMobile by 388.7% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,559 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 1,240 shares during the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in AST SpaceMobile in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in AST SpaceMobile in the first quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Close Asset Management Ltd lifted its stake in AST SpaceMobile by 72.4% in the first quarter. Close Asset Management Ltd now owns 1,810 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 760 shares during the last quarter. 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.