AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) Trading Down 1.6% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Shares fell 1.6% to $86.98 intraday, trading as low as $82.85 on volume of about 10.04 million shares (roughly 33% below its ~14.9M average daily volume).
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but bearish on average: two Buys, six Holds and three Sells translate to an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $63.77.
• Recent quarter: revenue beat but EPS missed — revenue was $54.31M (up 2,731% year-over-year) versus a $39.53M estimate, while EPS missed at -$0.26 (vs. -$0.18), and the company still shows deeply negative margins and ROE.

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report)'s stock price was down 1.6% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $82.85 and last traded at $86.98. 10,036,963 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 33% from the average daily volume of 14,892,915 shares. The stock had previously closed at $88.42.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ASTS. Scotiabank downgraded shares of AST SpaceMobile from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector underperform" rating and set a $45.60 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of AST SpaceMobile from $43.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of AST SpaceMobile from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. B. Riley Financial lowered their price target on shares of AST SpaceMobile from $105.00 to $95.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $63.77.

AST SpaceMobile Trading Down 1.6%

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $96.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $77.60. The company has a market cap of $33.23 billion, a PE ratio of -65.89 and a beta of 2.78. The company has a current ratio of 16.35, a quick ratio of 16.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.18) by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $54.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $39.53 million. AST SpaceMobile had a negative net margin of 482.16% and a negative return on equity of 23.02%. The firm's revenue was up 2731.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -0.4 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at AST SpaceMobile

In other AST SpaceMobile news, Director Keith R. Larson purchased 625 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 24th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $80.00 per share, for a total transaction of $50,000.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 2,015 shares of the company's stock, valued at $161,200. This represents a 44.96% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 30.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AST SpaceMobile

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ASTS. Vodafone Ventures Ltd bought a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the fourth quarter worth $397,413,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the fourth quarter valued at $198,270,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 13.4% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,919,888 shares of the company's stock valued at $977,668,000 after purchasing an additional 2,351,539 shares during the period. Clear Street Group Inc. purchased a new stake in AST SpaceMobile during the 3rd quarter worth about $90,129,000. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted its holdings in AST SpaceMobile by 44.0% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,661,551 shares of the company's stock worth $338,569,000 after purchasing an additional 1,425,199 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors 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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