AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) Shares Down 14.8% Following Analyst Downgrade

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS)’s stock price dropped 14.8% on Friday after Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded the stock from a buy rating to a hold rating. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft now has a $106.00 price target on the stock, down from their previous price target of $117.00. AST SpaceMobile traded as low as $105.37 and last traded at $113.41. Approximately 53,565,971 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 205% from the average daily volume of 17,543,115 shares. The stock had previously closed at $133.09.

Several other analysts have also commented on the stock. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of AST SpaceMobile from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of AST SpaceMobile from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. B. Riley Financial upped their price objective on AST SpaceMobile from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on AST SpaceMobile from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, AST SpaceMobile currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $81.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at AST SpaceMobile

In other AST SpaceMobile news, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.88, for a total transaction of $3,555,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 4,750 shares in the company, valued at $422,180. This trade represents a 89.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Andrew Martin Johnson sold 5,000 shares of AST SpaceMobile stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.25, for a total transaction of $451,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 565,805 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $51,063,901.25. The trade was a 0.88% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 3,100,000 shares of company stock valued at $276,048,350 in the last three months. 20.89% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

AST SpaceMobile News Summary

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

• Negative Sentiment: AST SpaceMobile fell after Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket exploded during a test, stoking concerns that launch delays could disrupt ASTS’s satellite rollout plans and slow progress on its 45-satellite deployment schedule. Blue Origin Blast Sends AST SpaceMobile Down 18.5%
• Negative Sentiment: Deutsche Bank downgraded ASTS from buy to hold and cut its price target to $106 from $117, adding more pressure to a stock already trading at a rich valuation. AST SpaceMobile Shares Sink After Blue Origin Rocket Explosion
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are also worried the Blue Origin failure could delay ASTS satellite launches, especially since a prior New Glenn mission already failed to place one of ASTS’s BlueBird satellites into the correct orbit. ASTS Stock Slides Overnight: Blue Origin Explosion Raises Fresh Fears For 45-Satellite Rollout
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling by President Scott Wisniewski, who sold 25,904 shares, may also weigh on sentiment even though the transaction was relatively small versus his remaining holdings. Insider Selling: AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) President Sells 25,904 Shares of Stock

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AST SpaceMobile

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ASTS. REAP Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new position in AST SpaceMobile in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in AST SpaceMobile in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its holdings in AST SpaceMobile by 16,350.0% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 329 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 327 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.95% of the company’s stock.

AST SpaceMobile Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $44.02 billion, a P/E ratio of -63.71 and a beta of 2.60. 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 company has a 50-day moving average price of $87.61 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $85.05.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 11th. The company reported ($0.66) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.23) by ($0.43). The firm had revenue of $14.74 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.01 million. AST SpaceMobile had a negative net margin of 573.67% and a negative return on equity of 24.87%. AST SpaceMobile’s revenue was up 1952.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.20) earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -1.47 earnings per share for the current year.

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.