AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) Shares Up 12.3% – Time to Buy?

Shares of AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS) traded up 12.3% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $83.28 and last traded at $82.87. 14,997,896 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 1% from the average session volume of 14,915,082 shares. The stock had previously closed at $73.82.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on ASTS shares. Zacks Research raised AST SpaceMobile from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. B. Riley Financial lowered their price target on AST SpaceMobile from $105.00 to $95.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on AST SpaceMobile from $43.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Scotiabank cut AST SpaceMobile from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector underperform” rating and set a $45.60 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AST SpaceMobile presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $63.77.

AST SpaceMobile Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $31.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -62.78 and a beta of 2.78. The company has a current ratio of 16.35, a quick ratio of 16.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $94.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $79.20.

AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.18) by ($0.08). AST SpaceMobile had a negative net margin of 482.16% and a negative return on equity of 23.02%. The business had revenue of $54.31 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $39.53 million. AST SpaceMobile’s revenue was up 2731.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that AST SpaceMobile, Inc. will post -0.4 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at AST SpaceMobile

In related news, CTO Huiwen Yao sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 23rd. The stock was 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 directly owned 4,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $422,180. The trade was a 89.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 30.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AST SpaceMobile

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in AST SpaceMobile in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Byrne Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in AST SpaceMobile in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Acumen Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in AST SpaceMobile during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in AST SpaceMobile during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.95% of the company’s stock.

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.