AST SpaceMobile, Inc. $ASTS Shares Bought by State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System

Key Points

• State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System raised its holdings by 342.2%, buying an additional 102,217 shares to hold 132,087 AST SpaceMobile shares worth about $6.17 million at quarter end.
• AST SpaceMobile's latest quarter missed expectations with EPS of ($0.45) vs. ($0.18) est. and revenue of $14.74 million (vs. $22.04M est.), despite revenue rising 1,236% year‑over‑year and very large negative margins.
• The stock opened around $61.44 (up ~8%), market cap ~$22.6B, while analysts' consensus is a "Hold" with an average price target of $45.66, below current trading levels.

State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Free Report) by 342.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 132,087 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 102,217 shares during the period. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System's holdings in AST SpaceMobile were worth $6,172,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in AST SpaceMobile by 197.6% during the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 2,574 shares of the company's stock worth $120,000 after buying an additional 1,709 shares during the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in AST SpaceMobile by 44.6% in the second quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 16,311 shares of the company's stock worth $762,000 after acquiring an additional 5,028 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the second quarter worth about $2,474,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 95.6% during the second quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,719 shares of the company's stock valued at $127,000 after acquiring an additional 1,329 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CreativeOne Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the second quarter valued at about $538,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.95% of the company's stock.

AST SpaceMobile Stock Up 8.0%

NASDAQ:ASTS opened at $61.44 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 9.56 and a quick ratio of 9.48. The company's fifty day moving average price is $68.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $52.23. AST SpaceMobile, Inc. has a 1-year low of $17.50 and a 1-year high of $102.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.55 billion, a P/E ratio of -49.55 and a beta of 2.76.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The company reported ($0.45) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.18) by ($0.27). The business had revenue of $14.74 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.04 million. AST SpaceMobile had a negative net margin of 1,639.59% and a negative return on equity of 27.76%. AST SpaceMobile's revenue for the quarter was up 1236.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($1.10) earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -0.4 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Roth Capital reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. William Blair initiated coverage on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a report on Thursday, August 21st. They set a "market perform" rating on the stock. UBS Group downgraded AST SpaceMobile from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their target price for the company from $62.00 to $43.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 9th. Barclays cut AST SpaceMobile from an "overweight" rating to an "underweight" rating and set a $60.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded AST SpaceMobile from a "sector underperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and set a $45.60 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $45.66.

Insider Transactions at AST SpaceMobile

In related news, Director Adriana Cisneros purchased 750 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 20th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $50.79 per share, with a total value of $38,092.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 784,077 shares of the company's stock, valued at $39,823,270.83. The trade was a 0.10% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew Martin Johnson sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.00, for a total value of $560,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 387,485 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,699,160. This represents a 2.52% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 30.90% of the company's stock.

About AST SpaceMobile

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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