AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday following a dissappointing earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $27.16, but opened at $25.90. AST SpaceMobile shares last traded at $26.82, with a volume of 4,728,634 shares.

The company reported ($0.20) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.17) by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $0.72 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.85 million.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group lifted their price target on AST SpaceMobile from $31.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Roth Capital assumed coverage on AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $42.00 target price on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $30.00 target price on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Oppenheimer assumed coverage on AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Monday, May 5th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $42.82.

Insider Buying and Selling at AST SpaceMobile

In other news, Director Julio A. Torres sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.73, for a total value of $614,600.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 52,628 shares in the company, valued at $1,617,258.44. This represents a 27.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 34.15% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in AST SpaceMobile by 235.9% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 247,781 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,479,000 after acquiring an additional 174,007 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,266,713 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,728,000 after acquiring an additional 135,008 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB bought a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the fourth quarter worth about $755,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its holdings in AST SpaceMobile by 25.2% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 117,822 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,486,000 after acquiring an additional 23,746 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile by 150.1% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 258,747 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,460,000 after acquiring an additional 155,310 shares during the period. 60.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AST SpaceMobile Stock Down 3.7%

The company has a quick ratio of 5.80, a current ratio of 5.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The firm has a market cap of $8.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -12.26 and a beta of 2.05. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $24.75 and its 200 day moving average is $24.49.

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.