AST SpaceMobile's stock surges after landing defense contract

AST SpaceMobile (ASTS) announced on Friday that it has been awarded a contract for the US government's Missile Defense Agency Scalable Homeland Innovative Enterprise Layered Defense (SHIELD) program.

Terms of the contract were not disclosed, but the company said the agreement "encompasses a broad range of work areas that allows for the rapid delivery of innovative capabilities to the warfighter with increased speed and agility."

The SHIELD programs is part of President Trump's Golden Dome missile defense initiative, which is focused on building resilient and layered protection against air, missile, space, cyber, and hybrid threats from all operational domains.

AST SpaceMobile notes that the contract positions it to compete for future government contracts related to Missile Defense Agency systems supporting US national security interests.

“Being selected as a prime contract awardee for the MDA’s SHIELD program is a major validation of our unique, on-orbit, dual-use technology and our growing capabilities within the defense sector,” Chris Ivory, chief commercial officer and head of government business of AST SpaceMobile, said in a statement.

“Our innovative low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite architecture, featuring the largest commercial phased arrays ever deployed in low Earth orbit, is inherently scalable and resilient.”

The company said that the contract points to growing government interest in dual-use LEO constellations for integrated national defense initiatives. It also shows "the importance of leveraging American innovation and commercial space technology, in alignment with the U.S. Administration's policies."

AST SpaceMobile's stock soared 14.3% on Friday after the contract was announced.

Wall Street has its concerns about execution

The deal with the Missile Defense Agency comes about a week after Scotiabank analyst Andres Coello downgraded ASTS shares for the second time since October.

In both downgrades, Coello cited execution delays and the significant competition the company is facing from Starlink as the reasons behind the downgrade.

He said in a client note last week that Starlink's "brand and scale" presents a "major competitive headwind" to AST SpaceMobile, noting that the former has developed a "massive global lead."

"While it has been an ordeal for ASTS to launch seven satellites since 2017, in 2025 alone Starlink orbited 3,169 units," Coello said.

Both AST SpaceMobile and Starlink are racing to build networks to service the more than two billion people across the globe who lack access to high-speed internet services.

Starlink has been ramping up the pressure on its rival, spending nearly $20 billion last year to buy spectrum licenses from EchoStar, enabling EchoStar's Boost Mobile subscribers to access SpaceX's next-gen Starlink Direct-to-Cell service, while helping Starlink deliver superior service to smartphones.

It remains to be seen whether AST SpaceMobile's potential path for further government deals will ease concerns about execution delays on the commercial side of its business.

The company previously landed a deal with the government last March when it was awarded a $43 million contract to support the U.S. Space Development Agency (SDA) with its Block 2 BlueBird satellites.

AST SpaceMobiles stock has soared 462.8% over the past 12 months, but Coello has called the rally a "valuation bubble" that had reached "irrational levels."

Although Coello sees a "disconnect between valuation and execution progress," he said last week in his client note that AST SpaceMobile's technology nonetheless "remains highly disruptive and with potential for dual use."