AST SpaceMobile maintained its ambitious revenue target despite second-quarter results that fell short of Wall Street expectations, sending ASTS shares sharply lower on Monday.
Shares of AST SpaceMobile fell more than 4% during regular trading on Monday and extended losses by roughly 4% in after-hours trading before trimming declines to nearly 1% overnight.
The company reaffirmed its goal of approaching $1 billion in revenue during its first full year of commercial service, standing firm despite missing Q2 estimates on both the top and bottom lines.
President Scott Wisniewski offered reassurance to investors on the earnings call, stating, “Nothing’s changed on our expectation and our goal of approaching $1 billion of revenue in our first year of commercial service.”
Wisniewski added, “We still feel really good about that number. It’s just a question of when we kick it off and when we hit to run rate,” signaling confidence in the company’s commercial trajectory.
Government contracts are expected to be a substantial pillar of that target, with Wisniewski saying the segment could contribute “probably as much as half” of the nearly $1 billion goal.
AST SpaceMobile announced three new government awards carrying more than $100 million in funded near-term value during 2026 and 2027, with programs developed alongside the U.S. Department of War over several years.
Wisniewski projected significant scaling ahead, saying, “What we are seeing is that this opportunity is going to start scaling up into a recurring multi-billion dollar a year opportunity starting in 2027.”
The government segment currently remains a minority of the company’s $1.3 billion backlog, though management expects it to grow most significantly in the near term.
On the satellite deployment front, AST SpaceMobile has booked 10 launches with two providers and is targeting consumer-ready beta capabilities later in 2026, with 45 satellites in orbit planned by early 2027.
BlueBirds 14, 15 and 16 are preparing for shipment while production advances through BlueBird 46, with the company targeting an average launch cadence of roughly one every month or two.
Wisniewski emphasized urgency around deployment, saying, “We’re hearing from operators that they want the service now. We are pushing extremely hard,” and noted, “The steps from a scaled beta to commercial service is pretty quick. It’s just a function of satellites in orbit.”
Second-quarter revenue climbed to $31.5 million from $1.16 million a year earlier, driven by commercial gateway deliveries and U.S. government contract milestones, though the result missed the $34.4 million consensus estimate.
The Q2 net loss widened to $230.9 million, or $0.77 per share, compared with $99.4 million, or $0.41 per share, in the same period a year ago.
CEO Abel Avellan struck an optimistic tone, saying, “With the largest phased arrays ever deployed in low Earth orbit and a native cellular architecture designed to work directly with standard, unmodified smartphones, we believe we are uniquely positioned to deliver scalable direct-to-device connectivity for both commercial and government customers around the world.”
AST SpaceMobile reiterated its full-year 2026 revenue guidance of $150 million to $200 million, with growth expected quarter-over-quarter but weighted heavily toward the fourth quarter.
Retail sentiment on Stocktwits jumped to “extremely bullish” from “bullish” a day prior, accompanied by a 661% surge in 24-hour message volumes as traders weighed the forward guidance against the earnings miss.
One Stocktwits user commented, “$ASTS This company is perhaps the biggest saving grace for AT&T and Verizon from Starlink encroaching on their user base and revenue. The telcos have spectrum, distribution but not the satellite technology. Shorting this stock is moronic.”
Despite Monday’s selloff, ASTS stock has risen 48% over the past year, reflecting sustained investor interest in the company’s long-term direct-to-device satellite connectivity ambitions.
