Gotham Asset Management LLC Purchases 93,039 Shares of AST SpaceMobile, Inc. $ASTS

Key Points

• Gotham Asset Management LLC increased its shareholding in AST SpaceMobile by 18.1%, acquiring an additional 93,039 shares, bringing its total ownership to 607,910 shares worth approximately $13.8 million.
• Recent transactions by insiders include significant sales of shares, with CFO Andrew Martin Johnson selling 20,000 shares and President Scott Wisniewski selling 50,000 shares, indicating a decrease in their ownership.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on AST SpaceMobile, with Zacks upgrading the stock to a "hold" rating, while others maintained or lowered price targets, reflecting varied expectations for the company's performance.

Gotham Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Free Report) by 18.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 607,910 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 93,039 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC owned about 0.19% of AST SpaceMobile worth $13,824,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its position in AST SpaceMobile by 61.9% during the 1st quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 1,321 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 505 shares during the last quarter. Xponance Inc. increased its stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 5.9% during the first quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 10,244 shares of the company's stock valued at $233,000 after buying an additional 568 shares during the period. Close Asset Management Ltd raised its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 72.4% during the first quarter. Close Asset Management Ltd now owns 1,810 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 760 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in AST SpaceMobile by 15.6% in the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 7,525 shares of the company's stock worth $171,000 after acquiring an additional 1,016 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in AST SpaceMobile by 388.7% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,559 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 1,240 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.95% of the company's stock.

AST SpaceMobile Stock Up 2.6%

AST SpaceMobile stock traded up $0.95 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $37.86. The company had a trading volume of 3,521,442 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,688,825. AST SpaceMobile, Inc. has a 12 month low of $17.50 and a 12 month high of $60.95. The company has a market capitalization of $13.57 billion, a PE ratio of -19.92 and a beta of 2.43. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $49.12 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $35.76. The company has a current ratio of 8.23, a quick ratio of 8.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 11th. The company reported ($0.41) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.19) by ($0.22). The company had revenue of $1.16 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.37 million. AST SpaceMobile had a negative return on equity of 26.81% and a negative net margin of 7,213.90%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -0.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at AST SpaceMobile

In related news, CFO Andrew Martin Johnson sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.48, for a total transaction of $1,049,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 397,485 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,860,012.80. This trade represents a 4.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Shanti B. Gupta sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.84, for a total transaction of $418,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 305,667 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,789,107.28. The trade was a 3.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 41.80% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ASTS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. William Blair assumed coverage on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Zacks Research upgraded shares of AST SpaceMobile from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. Scotiabank reduced their target price on AST SpaceMobile from $45.40 to $42.90 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 7th. B. Riley reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $44.00 target price (up previously from $36.00) on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Finally, Bank of America began coverage on AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $55.00 price target on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AST SpaceMobile currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $42.82.

AST SpaceMobile Company Profile

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.