AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) Trading Down 5.7% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• AST SpaceMobile shares fell 5.7% to $67.07 in Tuesday trading, with volume down 48% from the average. The stock remains below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages of $72.03 and $84.36, respectively.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed, with four Buy, six Hold, and two Sell ratings. The consensus rating is Hold, while the average price target of $85.98 implies potential upside.
• The company recently missed quarterly expectations, reporting an adjusted loss of $0.77 per share versus the projected $0.32 loss and revenue of $31.52 million versus the $34.53 million estimate. Insiders also sold 90,809 shares worth approximately $8.6 million during the last quarter.

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report)'s stock price dropped 5.7% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $66.01 and last traded at $67.07. Approximately 9,264,299 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 48% from the average daily volume of 17,827,982 shares. The stock had previously closed at $71.14.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. B. Riley Financial raised shares of AST SpaceMobile from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $85.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Scotiabank raised shares of AST SpaceMobile from a "sector underperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and set a $50.80 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Roth Capital reissued a "buy" rating and set a $108.00 target price on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. William Blair restated a "market perform" rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $93.00 price target on AST SpaceMobile in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $85.98.

AST SpaceMobile Trading Down 5.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 13.05 and a quick ratio of 12.90. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $72.03 and its 200-day simple moving average is $84.36. The firm has a market cap of $26.10 billion, a PE ratio of -31.34 and a beta of 2.76.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported ($0.77) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.32) by ($0.45). AST SpaceMobile had a negative net margin of 536.66% and a negative return on equity of 22.88%. The firm had revenue of $31.52 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.53 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.41) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -1.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AST SpaceMobile news, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 40,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.37, for a total value of $3,854,800.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 34,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Andrew Martin Johnson sold 45,809 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.81, for a total value of $4,297,342.29. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 503,619 shares in the company, valued at $47,244,498.39. This represents a 8.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 90,809 shares of company stock worth $8,603,392 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 20.89% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AST SpaceMobile

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vodafone Ventures Ltd purchased a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the fourth quarter worth about $397,413,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in AST SpaceMobile in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $198,270,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in AST SpaceMobile by 7.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,488,180 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,560,687,000 after acquiring an additional 1,568,292 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its position in AST SpaceMobile by 44.0% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,661,551 shares of the company's stock worth $338,569,000 after acquiring an additional 1,425,199 shares during the period. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth increased its stake in AST SpaceMobile by 8,016.7% during the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 1,269,609 shares of the company's stock worth $92,000,000 after acquiring an additional 1,253,967 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.95% of the company's stock.

AST SpaceMobile Company Profile

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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