AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) Trading Down 7.7% – Should You Sell?

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS) shares traded down 7.7% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $77.17 and last traded at $79.19. 23,942,334 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 51% from the average session volume of 15,817,029 shares. The stock had previously closed at $85.76.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ASTS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research cut AST SpaceMobile from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Scotiabank cut shares of AST SpaceMobile from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector underperform” rating and set a $45.60 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating on shares of AST SpaceMobile in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, B. Riley Financial decreased their price target on AST SpaceMobile from $105.00 to $95.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AST SpaceMobile currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $52.94.

AST SpaceMobile Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $93.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $72.15. The company has a current ratio of 9.56, a quick ratio of 9.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock has a market cap of $29.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -63.86 and a beta of 2.70.

Insider Activity at AST SpaceMobile

In other AST SpaceMobile news, Director Keith R. Larson bought 625 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 24th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $80.00 per share, for a total transaction of $50,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 2,015 shares in the company, valued at approximately $161,200. The trade was a 44.96% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Tower Corp /Ma/ American sold 2,288,621 shares of AST SpaceMobile stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.75, for a total transaction of $159,631,314.75. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 211,379 shares in the company, valued at $14,743,685.25. This trade represents a 91.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have purchased 2,015 shares of company stock worth $149,144 and have sold 2,344,621 shares worth $163,788,075. Insiders own 30.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AST SpaceMobile

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ASTS. REAP Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in AST SpaceMobile during the third quarter worth $25,000. Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new stake in shares of AST SpaceMobile in the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC bought a new position in AST SpaceMobile in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. 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.