Rocket Lab’s $554M Revenue Dwarfs AST SpaceMobile’s $18M Despite Identical $30B Valuations

Core Insights - AST SpaceMobile and Rocket Lab are experiencing a shift in retail sentiment, with both stocks now showing neutral sentiment scores of 53, down from higher scores earlier in December [2][4] - AST SpaceMobile's strong social sentiment was driven by excitement over its satellite constellation plans, but its financial performance has raised concerns [4][5] - Rocket Lab has demonstrated stronger operational performance, justifying its market position despite a higher valuation than AST SpaceMobile [5][6] Company Performance - AST SpaceMobile reported a Q3 loss of $0.45 per share, significantly missing estimates by 114%, with revenue of $14.74 million falling short of the $20.33 million expectation [4][6] - Rocket Lab outperformed expectations in Q3, posting a loss of only $0.03 per share, beating estimates by 71%, and achieving revenue of $155.08 million, which represents a 48% year-over-year growth [5][6] - Despite both companies having similar market caps around $30 billion, Rocket Lab generates 30 times more revenue than AST SpaceMobile, highlighting a stark operational contrast [6] Valuation Metrics - AST SpaceMobile trades at an extreme price-to-sales ratio of 1,567x, despite having $1.2 billion in cash and over $1 billion in contracted revenue commitments [4][6] - Rocket Lab's price-to-sales ratio is significantly lower at 55x, indicating a more favorable valuation relative to its operational performance [5][6] Market Sentiment - The initial enthusiasm for AST SpaceMobile has cooled, with its sentiment scores dropping from above 88 to 53, reflecting a shift in retail investor confidence [2][4] - Rocket Lab's sentiment has also declined but remains comparatively stable, indicating a more consistent investor outlook [2][3]