18,555 Shares in AST SpaceMobile, Inc. $ASTS Purchased by Griffin Asset Management Inc.

Key Points

• Griffin Asset Management opened a new position in AST SpaceMobile during the fourth quarter, buying 18,555 shares worth about $1.35 million.
• Institutional ownership remains heavy, with Vanguard, VanEck, Invesco and others also adding to positions; overall, hedge funds and institutions own 60.95% of ASTS shares.
• Despite recent momentum and positive carrier partnership news, the company reported a quarterly EPS miss and weaker-than-expected revenue, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus “Reduce” with a target price of $79.45.

Griffin Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 18,555 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,348,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASTS. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in AST SpaceMobile by 13.4% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,919,888 shares of the company's stock worth $977,668,000 after buying an additional 2,351,539 shares during the period. Clear Street Group Inc. purchased a new position in AST SpaceMobile in the 3rd quarter worth about $90,129,000. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in AST SpaceMobile by 125.1% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 782,041 shares of the company's stock worth $38,382,000 after buying an additional 434,615 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in AST SpaceMobile by 610.4% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 475,531 shares of the company's stock worth $22,222,000 after buying an additional 408,595 shares during the period. Finally, Jump Financial LLC increased its stake in AST SpaceMobile by 2,126.2% in the 3rd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 379,203 shares of the company's stock worth $18,611,000 after buying an additional 362,169 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.95% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 40,000 shares of AST SpaceMobile stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.88, for a total value of $3,555,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 4,750 shares in the company, valued at $422,180. This trade represents a 89.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Hiroshi Mikitani sold 1,350,000 shares of AST SpaceMobile stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.22, for a total transaction of $116,397,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 27,980,155 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,412,448,964.10. This trade represents a 4.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 3,095,000 shares of company stock worth $275,597,100 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 20.89% of the company's stock.

AST SpaceMobile Stock Up 1.7%

ASTS stock opened at $89.58 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $84.48 and a 200 day moving average of $83.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.22 billion, a PE ratio of -50.33 and a beta of 2.60. The company has a quick ratio of 18.37, a current ratio of 18.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. AST SpaceMobile, Inc. has a 52 week low of $22.47 and a 52 week high of $129.89.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 11th. The company reported ($0.66) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.23) by ($0.43). The company had revenue of $14.74 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.01 million. AST SpaceMobile had a negative return on equity of 24.87% and a negative net margin of 573.67%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1952.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.20) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -1.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of AST SpaceMobile from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Zacks Research raised shares of AST SpaceMobile from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of AST SpaceMobile from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $117.00 target price on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Two equities research 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 MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $79.45.

Key AST SpaceMobile News

Here are the key news stories impacting AST SpaceMobile this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Reports that AT&T and Verizon are backing a $1.2 billion broadband bet in space technology highlight growing carrier support for AST SpaceMobile’s satellite-to-phone model, which could expand future revenue opportunities. AT&T, Verizon back $1.2B broadband bet in space tech leader
• Positive Sentiment: Orange announced new partnerships with AST SpaceMobile to expand direct-to-cell satellite services, including trials in Romania, adding another validation point for the company’s commercial rollout. Orange Satellite And Cyber Moves Add New Angles To Valuation Story
• Positive Sentiment: Technical coverage pointed to a bullish “buy” signal after ASTS cleared a key trendline, suggesting traders are still adding to the recent rally. Satellite Stock 'Buy' Signal Could Mean More Gains
• Neutral Sentiment: AST SpaceMobile presented at J.P. Morgan’s Global Technology, Media and Communications Conference, keeping investor attention on the company’s strategy and execution. AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (ASTS) Presents at J.P. Morgan 54th Annual Global Technology, Media and Communications Conference Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary noted rising satellite-based telecom demand and ASTS’s telecom partnerships, but did not add a fresh catalyst beyond the company’s existing growth narrative. Can Rising Satellite-Based Telecom Services Boost ASTS' Future Profit?
• Negative Sentiment: One valuation-focused article cautioned that ASTS’s strong recent share price run has pushed investors to reexamine whether the stock’s current momentum has already priced in a lot of future growth. A Look At AST SpaceMobile (ASTS) Valuation After Strong Recent Share Price Momentum

AST SpaceMobile 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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