AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) Shares Down 9.2% – Here’s Why

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS)’s share price traded down 9.2% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $24.36 and last traded at $24.22. 7,963,838 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 37% from the average session volume of 12,563,835 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.66.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ASTS has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of AST SpaceMobile from $31.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Roth Capital started coverage on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $42.00 target price on the stock. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on shares of AST SpaceMobile from $47.90 to $45.40 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Oppenheimer began coverage on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Monday, May 5th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $30.00 price objective on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AST SpaceMobile has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $42.40.

AST SpaceMobile Stock Down 7.7%

The firm has a market capitalization of $7.79 billion, a PE ratio of -11.61 and a beta of 2.05. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $24.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $24.51. The company has a quick ratio of 5.80, a current ratio of 5.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported ($0.20) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.17) by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $0.72 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.85 million. As a group, research analysts forecast that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -0.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Julio A. Torres sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.73, for a total value of $614,600.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 52,628 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,617,258.44. This represents a 27.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 34.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of AST SpaceMobile

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASTS. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 61.9% during the first quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 1,321 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 505 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 388.7% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,559 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 1,240 shares during the period. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the first quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Close Asset Management Ltd raised its holdings in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 72.4% during the first quarter. Close Asset Management Ltd now owns 1,810 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 760 shares during the period. 60.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AST SpaceMobile Company Profile

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.