Satellite Stock Needs a Post-Earnings Pop to Stop the Slide

Broadband satellite stock AST SpaceMobile Inc (NASDAQ:ASTS) is 2% higher to trade at $84, as investors gear up for the Starlink rival's fourth-quarter report, due out after the close on Monday, March 2. Analysts are predicting a quarterly loss of $0.18 to $0.20 on revenue of $40.69 million. 

Historically, ASTS has finished the day higher after four of its last eight reports, averaging a move of 22%, regardless of direction. However, most of this accounts for a massive 68.% melt up from May 2024. This time around, investors expect a smaller-than-usual 15.3% move for Tuesday's trading.

ASTS boasts a 208% year-over-year lead, but has taken a 35% haircut off its Jan. 30 record high of $129.89. Despite the drawdown, support has stepped up at the shares' 100-day moving average.

Short sellers have been piling on. Short interest is up 8.9% in the last two reporting periods, and now makes up 28% of the security's available float. An upbeat report could  make ASTS a short squeeze contender in the coming weeks.

In the options pits, traders have been leaning toward calls. ASTS sports a 50-day call/put volume ratio of 2.07 on the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) which stands higher than 75% of all other annual readings.

Echoing this, the stock's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 0.57 sits in the 1st percentile of its annual range, suggesting short-term option players have rarely been more call-heavy throughout the past 12 months.