DAVENPORT & Co LLC Invests $4.50 Million in AST SpaceMobile, Inc. $ASTS

Key Points

• DAVENPORT & Co LLC bought a new 61,943‑share position in AST SpaceMobile in Q4 worth about $4.50 million, joining other institutions that now own roughly 60.95% of the stock.
• AST reported a large Q4 revenue beat ($54.31M vs. $39.53M est.) and is advancing its BlueBird rollout with the upcoming BlueBird‑7 launch as a near‑term commercial catalyst.
• Despite the revenue upside, AST missed EPS (‑$0.26 vs. ‑$0.18 est.), carries wide negative margins and a "Reduce" analyst consensus, and the CTO sold 40,000 shares (~$3.56M), adding short‑term downside risk.

DAVENPORT & Co LLC purchased a new position in AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 61,943 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,499,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. REAP Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in AST SpaceMobile in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 225.0% during the third quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 650 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc bought a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp boosted its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 30.0% in the 3rd quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 781 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. 60.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about AST SpaceMobile

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

• Positive Sentiment: Sector rally tailwind — reports that SpaceX may file a very large IPO lifted demand for space and satellite names, which earlier pushed ASTS higher before today’s pullback. Could SpaceX's $1.75 Trillion Valuation Make It the Biggest Public Offering in History?
• Positive Sentiment: Company fundamentals/near-term catalyst — ASTS reported a Q4 revenue beat and provided an update on its BlueBird rollout and the upcoming BlueBird‑7 launch, which investors see as the clearest path to commercial proof‑points for its direct‑to‑device network. AST SpaceMobile (ASTS) Is Up 5.9% After Q4 Revenue Beat And BlueBird 7 Launch Update
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional support — large funds (Vanguard, Morgan Stanley, State Street) have significantly increased positions during the quarter, which underpins longer‑term liquidity and can limit downside if execution stays on track. AST SpaceMobile institutional holdings and activity
• Neutral Sentiment: Peer comparison/sector rotation — analysts and media are re‑rating space peers (e.g., comparisons to Rocket Lab and strong moves in Planet Labs), which can shift flows between winners and laggards in the group without changing ASTS’s fundamental timetable. Better Buy: AST SpaceMobile or Rocket Lab?
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling — CTO Huiwen Yao sold 40,000 shares (~$3.56M), a large disclosed disposal that likely fed short‑term selling pressure and investor caution. Huiwen Yao insider sale
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst/consensus caution — broker consensus pulled to a "Reduce" and some firms have downgraded targets or flagged that ASTS’s valuation reflects high execution risk, increasing vulnerability to disappointment. AST SpaceMobile Given Consensus Recommendation of "Reduce"
• Negative Sentiment: Earnings/valuation friction — despite revenue growth, ASTS recently missed EPS estimates and still carries wide negative margins; investors are sensitive to any launch delays or operator monetization setbacks. Why AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (ASTS) Dipped More Than Broader Market Today

AST SpaceMobile Stock Performance

Shares of ASTS opened at $78.67 on Friday. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $94.98 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $78.37. The company has a current ratio of 16.35, a quick ratio of 16.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. AST SpaceMobile, Inc. has a 12 month low of $18.22 and a 12 month high of $129.89. The company has a market cap of $30.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -59.60 and a beta of 2.77.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.18) by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $54.31 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.53 million. AST SpaceMobile had a negative return on equity of 23.02% and a negative net margin of 482.16%.AST SpaceMobile's revenue for the quarter was up 2731.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -0.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ASTS shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "buy" rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Zacks Research upgraded AST SpaceMobile from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. B. Riley Financial lowered their price target on AST SpaceMobile from $105.00 to $95.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of AST SpaceMobile from $43.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $63.77.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 40,000 shares of AST SpaceMobile stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 23rd. The stock was 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 approximately $422,180. This trade represents a 89.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 30.90% of the company's stock.

About AST SpaceMobile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.