AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) Shares Climb 8.7% - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• AST SpaceMobile shares rose 8.7% on Wednesday to $36.62, with trading volume slightly above its daily average.
• The company’s latest quarter missed analyst estimates for both earnings and revenue, although revenue grew 187.9% year over year; AST SpaceMobile continues to report substantial losses.
• Analysts have a consensus Hold rating, while concerns include launch delays and cash burn. The proposed Blacklift rocket could reduce reliance on outside launch providers but adds development costs and execution risk.

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) traded up 8.7% during trading on Wednesday. The company traded as high as $36.91 and last traded at $36.62. 17,355,970 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 3% from the average daily volume of 16,860,746 shares. The stock had previously closed at $33.69.

Key AST SpaceMobile News

Here's some of the latest news about ASTS:

• Neutral Sentiment: AST SpaceMobile introduced its Blacklift rocket project, which could help address dependence on outside launch providers, but developing the rocket may add costs and execution risk before it delivers benefits. AST SpaceMobile Has a New Rocket Plan, But Its Cash-Burn Problem Isn't Going Away
• Negative Sentiment: Several analysts cut price targets after the results, citing launch delays, a slower deployment pace and later commercial availability. The reductions add to investor caution about execution and valuation. UBS Lowers AST SpaceMobile Price Target
• Negative Sentiment: Law firms are publicizing a securities class action and a November 13 lead-plaintiff deadline for investors who bought shares during the stated class period. The allegations are not findings of wrongdoing, but the litigation adds a reputational and legal overhang. AST SpaceMobile Investor Class Action Deadline Notice

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ASTS has been the topic of several research reports. William Blair restated a "market perform" rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a report on Monday, September 21st. Citigroup reissued a "positive" rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler lowered shares of AST SpaceMobile from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $98.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a report on Monday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $75.47.

AST SpaceMobile Price Performance

The company's 50-day moving average is $51.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 13.05 and a quick ratio of 12.90. The firm has a market cap of $14.25 billion, a P/E ratio of -17.19 and a beta of 2.88.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 9th. The company reported ($0.44) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.41) by ($0.03). AST SpaceMobile had a negative net margin of 439.71% and a negative return on equity of 21.29%. The firm had revenue of $42.32 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $45.73 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.45) earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 187.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -1.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other AST SpaceMobile news, Director Adriana Cisneros purchased 10,822 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 31st. The stock was bought at an average price of $57.22 per share, with a total value of $619,234.84. Following the acquisition, the director owned 797,023 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $45,605,656.06. This represents a 1.38% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 40,000 shares of AST SpaceMobile stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.93, for a total value of $2,357,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 34,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,047,817.50. This represents a 53.51% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 20.89% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Tidal Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 9,876.8% during the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 1,049,061 shares of the company's stock valued at $93,220,000 after purchasing an additional 1,038,546 shares during the last quarter. Tema ETFs LLC lifted its stake in AST SpaceMobile by 109,486.8% in the 2nd quarter. Tema ETFs LLC now owns 1,003,815 shares of the company's stock valued at $89,199,000 after purchasing an additional 1,002,899 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in AST SpaceMobile by 140.3% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,644,246 shares of the company's stock valued at $136,259,000 after purchasing an additional 960,045 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new position in AST SpaceMobile in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $45,926,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in AST SpaceMobile in the second quarter valued at approximately $67,907,000. Institutional investors own 60.95% of the company's stock.

About AST SpaceMobile

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. develops a space-based cellular broadband network designed to connect directly with standard mobile phones, without requiring users to purchase specialized satellite devices. Its planned services include voice calls, text messaging and mobile broadband, delivered through partnerships with mobile network operators and integrated with their existing networks. The company is developing and deploying its BlueBird satellite system to provide coverage in areas where terrestrial cellular networks are unavailable or limited.

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