AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ: ASTS) shares climbed 1% overnight Sunday following two significant operational developments that lifted investor sentiment after a bruising week.
The stock had tumbled 10% on Friday to close at $50.97, recording a 13% weekly loss and its second consecutive weekly decline, leaving shares down 30% year-to-date.
AST SpaceMobile announced over the weekend via X that BlueBird satellites 14, 15 and 16 had successfully arrived at Cape Canaveral in Florida, marking the next step toward their planned orbital deployment.
The company confirmed that satellite production in Texas remains active through BlueBird 50, underscoring the scale of its manufacturing ambitions as it works to build out a global constellation.
AST described the satellites as being prepared to deliver cellular broadband to everyday smartphones and support government applications, posting a brief message that read, “Next stop: orbit.”
No launch date has been announced for BlueBirds 14, 15 and 16, leaving investors to watch for further updates as the company advances its Block 2 fleet, which features phased-array antennas of up to approximately 2,400 square feet per satellite.
AST launched BlueBirds 11, 12 and 13 in August, bringing its total in-orbit count to 13, though the program has not been without setbacks, as BlueBird 7 was de-orbited in April after entering an unsustainably low orbit.
The company is targeting approximately 45 satellites in orbit by early 2027, with 45 to 60 satellites required for continuous coverage across key markets and a limited, intermittent service phase expected to begin before full deployment.
Separately, the Federal Communications Commission granted AST a 30-day special temporary authorization, running from October 9 through November 8, to test radiolocation capabilities using one previously authorized satellite across the 902-928 MHz band over the contiguous U.S. and Hawaii.
The authorization carries conditions requiring AST to operate on a non-interference basis and coordinate with nearby primary licensees, while the Space Development Agency backed the application, stating the demonstration would support its evaluation of commercial satellite architectures for military sensing and targeting.
On the commercial front, Telus and AST completed their first network integration test, covering voice calls, text messages and broadband data to smartphones, connecting Telus’ wireless network with AST’s space-based infrastructure.
Telus indicated the service is expected to reach customers on eligible phones within the next year, without any special equipment, with the companies framing the milestone as progress toward extending coverage into remote areas of Canada, including for emergency communications.
Retail sentiment on Stocktwits shifted to “extremely bullish” from “bullish” levels seen a week prior, accompanied by high message volume, reflecting elevated trader engagement despite the stock’s recent weakness.
One Stocktwits user wrote, “$ASTS well, we are still on track to have 14,15,16 in orbit by EOY. No word on 17,18,19 yet but I presume they will be in orbit mid/late Q1. Earnings early November will possibly bring some good nuggets. Hopefully no downgrades on sat deployment guidance or 2027 revenue. Let’s get a bounce off the 52 week low and see how this plays out.”
A more cautious voice on the platform posted, “$ASTS Heres the basic math: with this next launch, they’ll be at 16 sats. Need 45-60 for service so at minimum need 29 more. They will have launched 9 total in 2026. If that pace continues, thats 29/9 = 3.2 years till full service. if they dont pick up the pace, the entire company is cooked. I think theyre probably cooked already but nevertheless, the math is the math.”
