AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) versus IHS (NYSE:IHS) Head to Head Review

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) and IHS (NYSE:IHS) are both communication services companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, dividends, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares AST SpaceMobile and IHS’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
AST SpaceMobile	-536.66%	-22.88%	-10.67%
IHS	8.17%	-832.09%	11.80%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares AST SpaceMobile and IHS”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
AST SpaceMobile	$70.92 million	312.40	-$341.94 million	($2.14)	-26.60
IHS	$1.58 billion	1.80	$143.60 million	$0.40	21.09

IHS has higher revenue and earnings than AST SpaceMobile. AST SpaceMobile is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than IHS, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

61.0% of AST SpaceMobile shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 17.5% of IHS shares are owned by institutional investors. 20.9% of AST SpaceMobile shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.1% of IHS shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings for AST SpaceMobile and IHS, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
AST SpaceMobile	2	7	5	0	2.21
IHS	1	4	2	0	2.14

AST SpaceMobile currently has a consensus price target of $84.58, indicating a potential upside of 48.57%. IHS has a consensus price target of $8.80, indicating a potential upside of 4.33%. Given AST SpaceMobile’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe AST SpaceMobile is more favorable than IHS.

Volatility and Risk

AST SpaceMobile has a beta of 2.72, meaning that its share price is 172% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, IHS has a beta of 0.74, meaning that its share price is 26% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

AST SpaceMobile beats IHS on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About AST SpaceMobile

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.

About IHS

IHS Inc. develops source of information, insight and analytics in different areas of business. The Company’s segments include Resources, Transportation and Consolidated Markets & Solutions. The Company’s Resources segment includes its Energy and Chemicals product offerings. Its Transportation segment includes its Automotive; Maritime & Trade, and Aerospace, Defense & Security product offerings. Its Consolidated Markets & Solutions segment includes its Product Design; Technology, Media & Telecom, and Economics & Country Risk product offerings. It provides authoritative analysis and forecasts of sales and production for light vehicles, medium and heavy commercial vehicles, powertrain, components and technology systems across various markets. Its product design offerings include content and analysis on various engineering and technical standards, codes, reference books, journals, and other scientific and technical documents, as well as software-based engineering decision engines.