AST SpaceMobile, Inc. $ASTS Shares Purchased by Pictet Asset Management Holding SA

Key Points

• Pictet Asset Management increased its stake in AST SpaceMobile by 146.8% in the first quarter, ending with 79,666 shares valued at about $6.6 million.
• Analysts are mixed on the stock: ratings include a mix of buy, hold, and sell calls, with MarketBeat showing a consensus “Reduce” rating and an average price target of $85.09.
• Insider selling has been notable, including a recent sale by the CFO, while the company also reported a weaker-than-expected quarterly loss and revenue despite strong year-over-year revenue growth.

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Free Report) by 146.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 79,666 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 47,385 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA's holdings in AST SpaceMobile were worth $6,602,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Byrne Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Acumen Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in AST SpaceMobile during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. 60.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on ASTS. Barclays increased their target price on shares of AST SpaceMobile from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of AST SpaceMobile from a "sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $108.00 price objective on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut AST SpaceMobile from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $117.00 to $106.00 in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on AST SpaceMobile from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $85.09.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Andrew Martin Johnson sold 45,809 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.81, for a total transaction of $4,297,342.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 503,619 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,244,498.39. The trade was a 8.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Julio A. Torres sold 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.34, for a total value of $1,145,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 43,239 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,300,865.26. This represents a 25.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 3,145,809 shares of company stock worth $280,645,292. 20.89% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

AST SpaceMobile Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ASTS opened at $85.13 on Friday. AST SpaceMobile, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $36.08 and a fifty-two week high of $133.86. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $87.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $89.44. The company has a quick ratio of 18.37, a current ratio of 18.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market cap of $33.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -47.83 and a beta of 2.69.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 11th. The company reported ($0.66) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.23) by ($0.43). AST SpaceMobile had a negative return on equity of 24.87% and a negative net margin of 573.67%.The firm had revenue of $14.73 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.01 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.20) EPS. The company's revenue was up 1952.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -1.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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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