AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) Stock Price Down 1.5% – What’s Next?

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS)’s share price dropped 1.5% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $65.70 and last traded at $67.36. Approximately 12,499,863 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 31% from the average session volume of 18,178,586 shares. The stock had previously closed at $68.38.

More AST SpaceMobile News

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

• Positive Sentiment: AST SpaceMobile launched three additional BlueBird satellites, reportedly doubling download speeds for direct-to-device partners. The launch strengthens the company’s network capacity ahead of its Aug. 10 earnings call and supports its goal of deploying a larger constellation by 2027. AST SpaceMobile’s Latest BlueBird Launch Raises the Stakes Ahead of Q2 Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: The company received approval to launch direct-to-cell services in Japan with Rakuten Mobile. It also announced testing and network-integration work with Vodafone, Deutsche Telekom, Orange and other operators across Europe, expanding the potential addressable market for its satellite broadband service. AST SpaceMobile Secures Japan Direct To Cell Approval
• Positive Sentiment: Strength across space-related stocks, including a rally in SpaceX despite its lockup expiration, appears to be providing a favorable sector backdrop for ASTS. SpaceX Climbs as Lockup Expiration Fails to Trigger a Selloff
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are awaiting second-quarter results on Aug. 10. The report will be important for assessing commercial revenue growth, cash use, deployment timing and whether recent network developments are translating into financial progress. Heavily Shorted Satellite Stock Gearing Up for Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Pomerantz LLP is investigating potential claims on behalf of AST SpaceMobile investors. The announcement creates a legal and headline risk, although it does not establish wrongdoing. Pomerantz Investor Alert

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ASTS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Roth Capital reissued a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price objective on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Piper Sandler started coverage on AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $100.00 target price on the stock. New Street Research set a $106.00 price target on AST SpaceMobile in a report on Friday, May 29th. B. Riley Financial raised AST SpaceMobile from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on AST SpaceMobile from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AST SpaceMobile presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $87.60.

AST SpaceMobile Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $27.92 billion, a PE ratio of -40.42 and a beta of 2.75. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $75.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $86.21. The company has a quick ratio of 18.37, a current ratio of 18.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 11th. The company reported ($0.66) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.23) by ($0.43). AST SpaceMobile had a negative return on equity of 24.87% and a negative net margin of 573.67%.The firm had revenue of $14.73 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $39.01 million. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.20) earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1952.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -1.38 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.37, for a total value of $3,854,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 34,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,348,857.50. This represents a 53.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Andrew Martin Johnson sold 45,809 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.81, for a total value of $4,297,342.29. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 503,619 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,244,498.39. This represents a 8.34% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 105,809 shares of company stock worth $9,748,492. Corporate insiders own 20.89% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASTS. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 16,350.0% during the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 329 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust purchased a new position in AST SpaceMobile during the second quarter valued at $27,000. Acumen Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in AST SpaceMobile during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in AST SpaceMobile during the third quarter valued at $29,000. 60.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.