ASTS Stock Slips Premarket: BlueBird 7 Launch Countdown Begins Ahead Of Thursday Liftoff

• BlueBird 7 is entering final preparations ahead of its April 16 launch aboard Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket.
• The BlueBird 7 satellite is part of AST SpaceMobile’s next-generation Block 2 series to deliver up to 10x more bandwidth than current satellites.
• Last week, Barclays raised its price target on ASTS to $65 from $60 while maintaining an ‘Underweight’ rating.

Shares of AST SpaceMobile (ASTS) slipped 2% in premarket trading on Monday even as its next-generation BlueBird 7 satellite moved into final launch preparations ahead of an April 16 liftoff aboard Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket.

BlueBird 7 Nears April 16 Liftoff

The satellite has already been integrated with the NG-3 launch vehicle, Blue Origin said on X. BlueBird 7 is part of AST SpaceMobile’s next-generation Block 2 satellite series, designed to deliver up to 10x the bandwidth capacity of the company’s existing satellites.

The platform is expected to support U.S. nationwide coverage from space across over 5,600 coverage cells, with beams capable of supporting up to 40 MHz capacity and peak transmission speeds of up to 120 Mbps across voice, video and data services.

The spacecraft is expected to become the largest commercially deployed satellite in low Earth orbit once launched. The mission will carry a single 6,100-kg payload, the company said. 

The launch will also mark the first reflight of a New Glenn booster, with the same booster previously flown on the NG-2 mission. while NG-3 represents the third recovery attempt in the New Glenn program. The vehicle stands about 98 meters tall and can deliver up to 45,000 kilograms to low Earth orbit.

AST SpaceMobile had previously targeted a launch no earlier than April 10, before shifting toward a mid-April window for the NG-3 mission timeline from Launch Complex-36 at Cape Canaveral.

Launch Momentum Fails To Offset Macro Pressure

Separately, Barclays raised its price target on AST SpaceMobile to $65 from $60 last week, while maintaining an ‘Underweight’ rating on the shares.

The firm said it sees “substantial” revenue growth opportunities across the satellite-services industry, but noted pressure on “legacy” players from expanding low-Earth-orbit constellations continues to increase. Barclays added that the company’s spectrum holdings and orbital positions provide valuation support.

Despite better launch visibility, the BlueBird milestone did little to offset broader market sentiment amid geopolitical uncertainty following the collapse of U.S.-Iran talks over the weekend.

Investor attention across the space ecosystem has also increased alongside growing expectations of a potential SpaceX listing, with analysts including the company in a vertically integrated AI infrastructure stack spanning launch systems, satellites, connectivity, and compute.

Momentum across launch providers also strengthened after NASA confirmed a “textbook touchdown” for the Artemis II crew following its 10-day lunar mission.

How Do Retail Traders Feel About ASTS?

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment for ASTS slipped to ‘neutral’ from ‘bullish’ levels a day amid ‘high’ message volume.

One user said, “MAJOR MILESTONE COMING,” referring to Thursday’s liftoff plans.  

Another user said, “It’s a GREAT WEEK to be,” referring to sightings of the Blue Angels flying near New Glenn ahead of the NG-3 mission.

ASTS stock has jumped 31% over the past year.

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