No News Is Bad News for Holders of Astra Space Stock

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California-based Astra Space (NASDAQ:ASTR) is a company with a bold vision for the future of space travel. ASTR stock investors also have a bold vision: to profit as Astra launches satellites into the skies.

An illustration of outer space.
Source: Jurik Peter/ShutterStock.com

Astra Space is different from other space-travel businesses that you might know about. You won’t likely see Astra launching celebrities like Richard Branson, Jeff Bezos or Elon Musk into orbit anytime soon.

Rather, Astra Space tends to (pardon the pun) fly under the radar. Indeed, there wasn’t much buzz when ASTR stock began trading on the Nasdaq exchange in July of last year.

In theory, there’s nothing wrong with being a quiet innovator. However, with a paucity of fresh news, Astra Space could end up leaving its shareholders on the launch pad, going nowhere fast.

A Closer Look at ASTR Stock

ASTR stock provides a textbook example of why technical traders should pay attention to resistance levels.

Multiple times in August of 2021, and twice in November, the stock ran up to $11.50. Each and every time, however, the buyers were rejected and the share price fell.

The worst of those declines started in late November, and may still be in progress right now. As of mid-January 2022, ASTR stock was down to $5 and change, and the stock was clearly having trouble finding a bottom.

Going below $5 would be a major problem. That’s the last thing that Astra Space’s shareholders would need right now.

Falling below that level would make ASTR stock a penny stock, which can informally be defined as a stock that represents a small company and trades for less than $5 per share.

Hopefully, a near-term catalyst will put the stock back on the right path. That’s the problem, though: Astra Space hasn’t been much of a catalyst creator lately.

Modest Ambitions

This isn’t to suggest that Astra Space isn’t a visionary company, or that it hasn’t had any achievements.

In fact, Astra stands apart in certain respects. For example, it’s the first space-launch company to be publicly traded on Nasdaq exchange.

Furthermore, when Astra Space delivered its first commercial payload into Earth’s orbit last year, the company was apparently the “fastest company in history to reach this milestone, just five years after it was founded in 2016.”

Plus, while other companies focus on garnering attention and getting billionaires into orbit, Astra claims to provide the lowest cost-per-launch dedicated orbital launch service of any operational launch provider in the world.

In an earnings call, Astra Space founder, President, Chairman and CEO Chris C. Kemp concisely summed his company’s current focus as “becoming the global launch service provider providing the most frequent, flexible and lowest-cost dedicated launches.”

Say Something… Anything

Admittedly, Kemp practically admitted that Astra will court big spenders at some point.

“As we achieve our launch services goals, we’ll begin to introduce higher-margin space services,” he clarified.

That’s all fine and good, but what Kemp and his company need to do now is give the stakeholders something to get enthused about.

The most recent launch-focused press release involved Astra’s plans to deploy its first satellite in orbit for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in January 2022. And now, it’s January but there’s no word from Astra Space about this.

All we’ve seen so far in January is a press release about the redemption of Astra’s outstanding public and private warrants. For starry-eyed investors, that’s about as exciting as watching paint dry.

The Bottom Line

Going bottom-fishing with ASTR stock now would be a risky move. The momentum is clearly to the downside, and there’s no current catalyst to induce a turnaround.

It would be a shame if the Astra Space share price goes below $5 and stays there. If that happens, some investors might just capitulate and dump their shares.

So, feel free to keep an eye on Astra Space as the company could prove to be a game changer in space travel someday. Until then, we can only hope to hear something exciting from the company before more shareholders jump ship.

On the date of publication, David Moadel did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.

David Moadel has provided compelling content – and crossed the occasional line – on behalf of Motley Fool, Crush the Street, Market Realist, TalkMarkets, TipRanks, Benzinga, and (of course) InvestorPlace.com. He also serves as the chief analyst and market researcher for Portfolio Wealth Global and hosts the popular financial YouTube channel Looking at the Markets.


Article printed from InvestorPlace Media, https://investorplace.com/2022/01/no-news-is-definitely-bad-news-for-holders-of-astr-stock/.

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