AST SpaceMobile Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:ASTS)

AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS) was the target of some unusual options trading on Monday. Stock investors purchased 102,923 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 68% compared to the average daily volume of 61,434 call options.

AST SpaceMobile Trading Down 5.5 %

ASTS stock traded down $1.49 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $25.62. 14,672,668 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,917,909. AST SpaceMobile has a 12-month low of $1.97 and a 12-month high of $39.08. 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 business has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.42 billion, a P/E ratio of -12.08 and a beta of 1.62.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ASTS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded AST SpaceMobile to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on AST SpaceMobile from $44.70 to $40.20 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on AST SpaceMobile from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AST SpaceMobile presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $40.04.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in AST SpaceMobile by 235.9% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 247,781 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,479,000 after buying an additional 174,007 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in AST SpaceMobile by 141.1% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 103,437 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,716,000 after purchasing an additional 60,530 shares in the last quarter. Algert Global LLC purchased a new position in shares of AST SpaceMobile during the third quarter worth about $768,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB acquired a new position in AST SpaceMobile during the fourth quarter worth approximately $755,000. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its position in AST SpaceMobile by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 846,072 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,125,000 after purchasing an additional 47,600 shares during the last quarter. 60.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.