AST SpaceMobile (ASTS) stock and Rocket Lab USA (RKLB) stock both down 6% in early Thursday trading, extending weekly declines amid geopolitical anxiety over Iran conflict and pre-holiday risk-off positioning pushing investors from high-beta space stocks.

AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird satellite program is advancing with 45-60 satellites targeted by end-2026, while the company’s Q4 revenue beat estimates at $54.3M (+2,731% YoY).

Rocket Lab’s acquisition of Mynaric expands capabilities, and fourth-quarter revenue grew 35.7% YoY to $179.7M with $1.85B backlog (+73% YoY).

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Shares of AST SpaceMobile (NASDAQ:ASTS) and Rocket Lab USA (NASDAQ:RKLB) are each down 6% in early trading this Thursday morning, extending a rough week for both space names. ASTS stock closed at $83.99 on April 1 and RKLB shares closed at $65.52, meaning today's declines are carving further into what has already been a painful stretch.

The timing makes this selloff sting a little more. Today is the last trading session before Good Friday on April 3, when U.S. markets are closed. That long-weekend dynamic tends to push traders out of high-beta, speculative positions they'd rather not hold over three days of silence. Both ASTS and RKLB fit that profile exactly.

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What makes today's move frustrating for the bulls is that the company-specific news hasn't turned negative. Both names have real catalysts in play; the macro environment is simply winning the argument right now.

The primary driver today is broader market anxiety tied to geopolitical fears around the Iran conflict, which is pushing investors away from speculative growth stocks and into safer ground. Space companies, with their long runways to profitability and high operational costs, are easy targets in a risk-off session.

For ASTS stock specifically, the one-week decline now stands at 13%, suggesting today's move is part of a sustained short-term pullback rather than a single-day overreaction. High-frequency trading activity around the SpaceX IPO narrative is also adding noise, pulling speculative capital in and out of the space sector without much regard for individual company fundamentals.

Rocket Lab, meanwhile, is in a similar position. RKLB shares are down 10% over the past week, and year-to-date the stock is off 6%. Execution risks and the need for steady revenue conversion remain key concerns despite a strong contract pipeline.

AST SpaceMobile's BlueBird satellite program continues to advance. BlueBird 6 has completed unfolding, BlueBird 7 is encapsulated at Cape Canaveral awaiting launch, and BlueBirds 8 through 29 are in production.

The company is targeting 45 to 60 satellites in orbit by the end of 2026, which would represent a genuine commercial inflection point. AST SpaceMobile CEO Abel Avellan remarked, "In 2026, we expect to scale our space-based direct-to-device network from initial commercial activation toward the start of broader commercial service."

The financial foundation is also more solid than the stock price action implies. AST SpaceMobile carries liquidity exceeding $3.9 billion pro forma, holds more than $1.2 billion in contracted partner commitments, and received a $175 million prepayment from STC Group. Partners include AT&T (NYSE:T), Verizon (NYSE:VZ), and others. AST SpaceMobile's Q4 2025 revenue came in at $54.305 million, beating the estimate of $42.24 million, with year-over-year growth of 2,731%.

Rocket Lab's story is equally compelling on paper. The company recently received approval for its acquisition of Mynaric AG, expanding its optical communications capabilities.

Furthermore, Rocket Lab's Q4 2025 revenue was $179.652 million, up 35.7% year over year, with a backlog of $1.85 billion, up 73% year over year. The company's non-GAAP gross margin expanded to 44.3% in Q4 2025, up from 34.0% in Q4 2024. We covered the bull and bear cases for ASTS and RKLB in detail.

Despite today's pressure, the one-year picture remains intact for both names. ASTS stock is up 284.39% over the past year and RKLB shares have gained 260.99% over the same period. That kind of momentum doesn't disappear in a pre-holiday session, but it can get tested when the macro environment turns hostile.

The composite sentiment score for ASTS sits at 62.45, tilting bullish with medium confidence, while RKLB's composite score is 65.51, also bullish with medium confidence. The bulls aren't gone. They're just waiting for the weekend to pass and the geopolitical noise to settle before stepping back in.

Watch for whether both stocks can hold their current levels into today's close. That will be the first signal of whether this is a shakeout or the start of something more sustained.

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