RJ Hamster
Everyone Missed This: The Tech Metal Up Triple Digits.
| UnsubscribeA message from i2i Marketing Group, LLCThe Metal Powering Tech Is Surging – Here’s the AngleSilver sits at the center of every major growth trend – AI chips, EV batteries, solar systems, 5G hardware, and electrification. 2025 demand hit a record high, while supply barely moved.The result: a tightening market that has historically preceded big moves for early-cycle names.For investors, this imbalance can create meaningful windows – especially for companies positioned in proven belts. One small cap with three 100%-owned projects is gaining attention as the market adjusts to rising tech demand and limited supply.This is where trends shift into opportunities.See the early-stage name tied to this trend This Week’s Exclusive NewsPentagon Deal Sends AST SpaceMobile Soaring—Is This the Next Leg Up?By Jordan Chussler. Article Published: 1/16/2026. What You Need to KnowAfter surging 452% over the past year, shares of ASTS jumped 15% on Friday on the news of being awarded a contract by the Pentagon.The news comes after AST SpaceMobile’s successful launch of its BlueBird 6 satellite in December 2025.Earlier in the week, the stock—which was downgraded from Buy to Neutral by B. Riley Securities—sold off but has more than recovered those losses since.Shares of AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ: ASTS) jumped 15% on Friday after the company announced it was awarded a government contract under the Missile Defense Agency Scalable Homeland Innovative Enterprise Layered Defense (SHIELD) indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) vehicle. The move higher came after communication services stocks slipped earlier in the week when the SpaceX rival was downgraded from a Buy to a Neutral rating by B. Riley Securities on Jan. 13. Buffett, Gates and Bezos Quietly Dumping Stocks—Here’s Why (Ad)Imagine a bull market so powerful, every single investor became a millionaire. Not by finding the next NVIDIA or Bitcoin, but by owning a simple index fund. It sounds impossible. Yet it happened – just a short time ago. Now a legendary figure says: “Brace yourselves. It’s about to happen here, in America. But fair warning – it could be the worst thing that ever happens to you.” This story has received little coverage in the press. But if history repeats, it could bump tens of millions of Americans into a 7-figure net worth practically overnight.Click here for the full story.Still, the SHIELD announcement highlights the company’s capabilities beyond commercial space-based cellular services and provides an additional tailwind as AST SpaceMobile prepares the next iteration of its BlueBird satellite. The SHIELD Initiative and America’s Golden Dome ProjectWhile AST SpaceMobile continues to build the first and only space-based cellular broadband network accessible directly by smartphones, it is also growing its government contract revenue. AST SpaceMobile’s selection reflects growing government interest in the company’s low-Earth orbit (LEO) capabilities, specifically their applications for national defense. The SHIELD program is part of the larger Golden Dome project, which focuses on layered protection against air, missile, space, cyber, and hybrid threats to the United States. “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,” said Chris Ivory, chief commercial officer and head of government business at AST SpaceMobile.Ivory added that the company’s LEO satellite architecture “is inherently scalable and resilient,” and said the SHIELD contract “establishes AST SpaceMobile as an eligible provider to bid directly on future task orders, enabling us to rapidly align our cutting-edge space technology with the critical needs of the Department of Defense and other U.S. government entities.”After BlueBird 6 Success, AST SpaceMobile Eyes BlueBird 7Another near-term catalyst for the stock is the upcoming BlueBird 7 satellite. Following the successful launch of BlueBird 6—the largest commercial communications array ever deployed into LEO—on Dec. 23, 2025, the company is now focused on BlueBird 7.BlueBird 6 is 3.5 times the size of its predecessors and supports about 10 times their data capacity after launching from India’s Satish Dhawan Space Center last month. The company says BlueBird 7 has arrived in Florida and is being integrated with its launch vehicle. AST SpaceMobile plans to deploy between 45 and 60 of these satellites by the end of 2026, including up to five potential deployments in March. After a Big Year, Wall Street Is Cautiously Optimistic About AST SpaceMobile As a company that is roughly 95% vertically integrated, AST SpaceMobile has pricing power and supply chain control that have strengthened its standing with investors. It holds more than 3,800 patents and patent-pending claims, and the firm has secured partnerships with carriers such as Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ), AT&T (NYSE: T), and Vodafone Group (NASDAQ: VOD). That complements commercial pacts with Japanese tech conglomerate Rakuten (OTCMKTS: RKUNY), real estate investment trust American Tower (NYSE: AMT), and BCE (NYSE: BCE), formerly Bell Canada Enterprises, one of Canada’s largest telecommunications and media companies. After a run-up in which ASTS shares gained more than 452% over the past year, Wall Street remains cautiously optimistic. The company will be looking for its first earnings beat in four quarters when it reports FY 2025 full-year and Q4 results on March 2. Of the 11 analysts covering AST SpaceMobile, two rate it a Buy, five a Hold, and four a Sell. However, analysts’ average 12-month price target of $45.66 implies nearly 61% potential downside from today’s share price. Conversely, TradeSmith notes ASTS’s financial health has been in the Green Zone for more than eight months, suggesting the company’s fundamentals could support a continued uptrend, albeit with normal pullbacks.Institutional ownership is below average at roughly 61%, but inflows of $1.91 billion over the past 12 months have far outpaced outflows of $320.68 million. Short interest—currently about 15%—represents tens of millions of shares out of AST SpaceMobile’s more than 367 million shares outstanding, indicating some market participants expect a possible near-term pullback or correction. This message is a paid sponsorship for i2i Marketing Group, LLC, a third-party advertiser of MarketBeat. Why did I get this email?. We are not securities dealers or brokers, investment advisers or financial advisers, and you should not rely on the information herein as investment advice. 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