AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) Trading Up 5.9% – Should You Buy?

Shares of AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS) were up 5.9% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $77.69 and last traded at $77.4840. 10,046,173 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 46% from the average daily volume of 18,472,375 shares. The stock had previously closed at $73.19.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. New Street Research set a $106.00 target price on AST SpaceMobile in a report on Friday, May 29th. B. Riley Financial boosted their price target on AST SpaceMobile from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. 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. Zacks Research raised AST SpaceMobile from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price objective on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $85.09.

AST SpaceMobile Trading Down 6.7%

The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $87.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $89.31. The company has a quick ratio of 18.37, a current ratio of 18.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.40 billion, a PE ratio of -38.21 and a beta of 2.70.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 11th. The company reported ($0.66) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.23) by ($0.43). The firm had revenue of $14.73 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $39.01 million. AST SpaceMobile had a negative net margin of 573.67% and a negative return on equity of 24.87%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1952.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.20) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -1.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Julio A. Torres sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.34, for a total transaction of $1,145,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 43,239 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,300,865.26. This trade represents a 25.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 40,000 shares of the 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 sale, 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 position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 3,145,809 shares of company stock valued at $280,645,292 in the last ninety days. 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. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 11.8% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 34,548 shares of the company’s stock valued at $786,000 after purchasing an additional 3,642 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 4.6% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 79,764 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,814,000 after purchasing an additional 3,515 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 16.1% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 467,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,634,000 after buying an additional 64,989 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in AST SpaceMobile by 18.1% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 325,621 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,405,000 after buying an additional 49,811 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio bought a new position in AST SpaceMobile during the first quarter valued at approximately $168,000. 60.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.