Focus Partners Wealth Acquires 1,253,967 Shares of AST SpaceMobile, Inc. $ASTS

Key Points

• Focus Partners Wealth significantly boosted its AST SpaceMobile stake in the fourth quarter, buying 1,253,967 additional shares and raising its holdings to 1,269,609 shares worth about $92 million.
• Institutional ownership remains heavy, with several other funds also increasing positions, while institutions collectively own about 60.95% of the company.
• Insider selling and mixed analyst sentiment weighed on the stock narrative: the CFO and a major shareholder sold large blocks, and analysts currently rate ASTS around “Reduce” with an average price target of $81.33.

Focus Partners Wealth grew its holdings in AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Free Report) by 8,016.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,269,609 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,253,967 shares during the quarter. Focus Partners Wealth owned approximately 0.35% of AST SpaceMobile worth $92,000,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 1,087.6% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 264,591 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,217,000 after purchasing an additional 242,311 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 58,941 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,281,000 after purchasing an additional 1,763 shares in the last quarter. Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 40.0% in the 4th quarter. Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC now owns 42,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,050,000 after purchasing an additional 12,000 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the 4th quarter valued at about $766,000. Finally, DLD Asset Management LP raised its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 231.8% in the 4th quarter. DLD Asset Management LP now owns 92,924 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,749,000 after purchasing an additional 64,918 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 60.95% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on ASTS. Zacks Research upgraded shares of AST SpaceMobile from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. New Street Research set a $106.00 price target on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a report on Friday, May 29th. William Blair restated a "market perform" rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a report on Friday, May 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of AST SpaceMobile from a "sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of AST SpaceMobile from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AST SpaceMobile presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $81.33.

Insider Activity at AST SpaceMobile

In other AST SpaceMobile news, CFO Andrew Martin Johnson sold 45,809 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief financial officer owned 503,619 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $47,244,498.39. The trade was a 8.34% 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 the business's 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 sale, the insider directly owned 27,980,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,412,448,964.10. This represents a 4.60% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 3,185,809 shares of company stock worth $284,200,492 in the last quarter. 20.89% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

AST SpaceMobile Stock Performance

NASDAQ ASTS opened at $82.41 on Monday. 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 firm has a market cap of $31.98 billion, a PE ratio of -46.30 and a beta of 2.70. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $90.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $88.15. AST SpaceMobile, Inc. has a 52 week low of $36.08 and a 52 week high of $133.86.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 11th. The company reported ($0.66) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.23) by ($0.43). The firm had revenue of $14.74 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.01 million. AST SpaceMobile had a negative return on equity of 24.87% and a negative net margin of 573.67%.The company's revenue was up 1952.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.20) EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -1.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Key AST SpaceMobile News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Some commentary remains constructive on AST SpaceMobile’s long-term potential, highlighting its direct-to-smartphone satellite connectivity model, nearly 60 mobile network operator partners, and a large deployment pipeline that could support a move toward $150 by 2027. Prediction: Can AST SpaceMobile Soar to $150 by 2027?
• Positive Sentiment: Earlier in the week, ASTS also benefited from bullish sector momentum after BlueBird launch timing was confirmed for June 17, reinforcing the view that near-term catalysts still exist despite Friday’s pullback. AST SpaceMobile Stock Climbs Ahead of SpaceX IPO As BlueBird Launch Date Confirmed for June 17
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary are framing the move as largely sentiment-driven rather than based on fresh company-specific operating news, with SpaceX IPO excitement lifting and then pressuring comparable space stocks throughout the session. SpaceX, Tesla, EchoStar, and More Stocks That Explain Today’s Market
• Negative Sentiment: AST SpaceMobile shares are being hit in a broad space-sector reset, with one report describing the stock as down sharply alongside Virgin Galactic and Rocket Lab as investors reassess valuations after the SpaceX debut. Virgin Galactic Craters 24%, Rocket Lab Drops 8%, AST SpaceMobile Falls 10% as SpaceX Hype Triggers a Space-Stock Shakeout
• Negative Sentiment: Short-seller criticism of space stocks is adding pressure to ASTS by reinforcing concerns that many of the sector’s growth expectations are too speculative in the wake of SpaceX’s public trading debut. Space Stocks Get Torched: Short Seller Calls Them 'Sci-Fi Wishes'

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.

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