SBI Securities Co. Ltd. Purchases 37,579 Shares of AST SpaceMobile, Inc. $ASTS

Key Points

• SBI Securities boosted its stake in AST SpaceMobile by 58.6% in Q4, buying 37,579 shares to hold 101,734 shares worth about $7.39 million, and institutional investors now own roughly 60.95% of the stock.
• Insider selling has been heavy: CTO Huiwen Yao sold 40,000 shares (~$3.56M) and major shareholder Hiroshi Mikitani sold 1,350,000 shares (~$116.4M), with insiders offloading a total of 3,080,000 shares worth about $274.45M in the last three months.
• Shares opened at $63.87 (down ~6.7%); the company reported an EPS miss (loss of $0.26 vs. $0.18 expected) despite revenue rising 2,731% YoY, and analysts’ consensus rating is "Reduce" with a $82.51 target.

SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Free Report) by 58.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 101,734 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 37,579 shares during the quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd.'s holdings in AST SpaceMobile were worth $7,389,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. REAP Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Byrne Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 60.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at AST SpaceMobile

In other AST SpaceMobile news, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 40,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 4,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $422,180. The trade was a 89.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Hiroshi Mikitani sold 1,350,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.22, for a total value of $116,397,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 27,980,155 shares in the company, valued at $2,412,448,964.10. This trade represents a 4.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 3,080,000 shares of company stock worth $274,452,000 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 30.90% of the company's stock.

AST SpaceMobile News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and screens point to the company having the setup to beat Q1 consensus due to strong revenue momentum and favorable telecom partnerships, which could support the stock if results and guidance impress. AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (ASTS) Expected to Beat Earnings Estimates
• Neutral Sentiment: Some value screens list ASTS among stocks trading materially below calculated intrinsic values, suggesting upside for longer-term, value-oriented investors — but this depends on execution and profitability improving. 3 Stocks Estimated To Be Trading Up To 49.9% Below Intrinsic Value
• Negative Sentiment: Recent proxy disclosures and market commentary have focused investor attention on whether ASTS can meet satellite-to-phone rollout milestones; doubts about execution timing are pressuring the share price. What's Going On With AST SpaceMobile Stock Today?
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling picked up in April, which markets often view as a negative signal for insiders’ near-term confidence and can amplify downside when paired with execution risk. Leading Insider Sales: April Activity Ramps in These Stocks (ASTS)

AST SpaceMobile Trading Down 6.7%

AST SpaceMobile stock opened at $63.87 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 16.35, a quick ratio of 16.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $86.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $83.14. AST SpaceMobile, Inc. has a 12 month low of $22.47 and a 12 month high of $129.89. The company has a market capitalization of $24.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -48.39 and a beta of 2.60.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.18) by ($0.08). AST SpaceMobile had a negative return on equity of 23.02% and a negative net margin of 482.16%.The company had revenue of $54.31 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.53 million. AST SpaceMobile's revenue for the quarter was up 2731.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -0.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on ASTS. UBS Group lifted their price target on AST SpaceMobile from $43.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Barclays lifted their price target on AST SpaceMobile from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $117.00 price target on AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. B. Riley Financial dropped their price target on AST SpaceMobile from $105.00 to $95.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded AST SpaceMobile from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AST SpaceMobile has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $82.51.

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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