AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) Trading Up 1.3% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• AST SpaceMobile's shares rose by 1.3% recently, trading at around $95.69 after a high of $99.82, with a total volume of approximately 14.3 million shares exchanged.
• Equities analysts have mixed ratings on AST SpaceMobile, with two analysts recommending a Sell, while four give a Buy rating, resulting in an average consensus rating of Hold and a target price of $45.27.
• The company reported a loss of $0.41 per share in its latest earnings, falling short of analysts' expectations and generating only $1.16 million in revenue against anticipated figures of $6.37 million.

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) shares were up 1.3% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $99.82 and last traded at $95.69. Approximately 14,311,455 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 17% from the average daily volume of 12,215,228 shares. The stock had previously closed at $94.50.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on ASTS shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group lowered shares of AST SpaceMobile from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $62.00 to $43.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 9th. William Blair started coverage on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a report on Thursday, August 21st. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of AST SpaceMobile from $37.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $55.00 price target for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AST SpaceMobile has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $45.27.

AST SpaceMobile Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 8.23 and a current ratio of 8.23. The firm has a market cap of $34.31 billion, a P/E ratio of -50.63 and a beta of 2.41. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $52.44 and its 200 day moving average price is $41.02.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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). AST SpaceMobile had a negative return on equity of 26.81% and a negative net margin of 7,213.90%.The firm had revenue of $1.16 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.37 million. Sell-side analysts expect that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -0.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Andrew Martin Johnson sold 20,000 shares of AST SpaceMobile stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.48, for a total value of $1,049,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 397,485 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,860,012.80. The trade was a 4.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 40,000 shares of AST SpaceMobile stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.58, for a total transaction of $1,623,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer directly 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. 41.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in AST SpaceMobile during the 4th quarter worth approximately $217,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in AST SpaceMobile by 388.7% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,559 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 1,240 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in AST SpaceMobile by 246.1% during the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 29,802 shares of the company's stock worth $678,000 after purchasing an additional 21,192 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC purchased a new stake in AST SpaceMobile during the 1st quarter worth approximately $331,000. Finally, Sowell Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in AST SpaceMobile during the 1st quarter worth approximately $216,000. 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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