Jim Cramer says it's time to buy one surging space stock

As America celebrates its 250th birthday this July 4 weekend, Jim Cramer took a moment on the "Mad Money" Lightning Round Tuesday, June 30, to flag a space company he believes could make investors real money over the next two years.

The stock is AST SpaceMobile (ASTS). The call was brief, as lightning rounds always are, but the conviction was clear.

ASTS closed July 2 at $85.13, down slightly on the session but up 17.21% year to date and 86.24% over the past year, according to Yahoo Finance. The three-year return of 1,711% tells the longer story of what this company has done for early believers.

I want to unpack why Cramer made this call, what the company actually does, and what you (if walking into this stock) need to understand about the risk profile.

Also Read: AST SpaceMobile Inc. Latest News and Stories

What AST SpaceMobile actually does and why it is different

Most satellite communication companies require specialized hardware. A dedicated device. A proprietary terminal. Something the average person does not own and has to purchase separately.

The nine-year-old AST SpaceMobile is building something different. The company's technology functions as a "cell tower in space" — connecting standard, unmodified smartphones directly to its satellite network. 

No hardware changes. No special device. And just like that, the phone in your pocket today would be able to access broadband coverage anywhere on Earth if the AST constellation scales as planned.

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The commercial strategy is equally distinctive. Rather than competing with telecom carriers, AST partners with them. The company has signed agreements with nearly 60 mobile network operators globally, reaching over 3 billion potential subscribers, according to AST Space Mobile.

AT&T, Verizon, and Vodafone are among the partner names, according to company disclosures. A partnership with Rakuten in Japan recently received approximately $923 million in government subsidies to accelerate the deployment of direct-to-mobile satellite services, according to BigGo Finance.

The addressable market that the thesis opens up, which is the universal broadband coverage through existing handsets, for every carrier customer globally, is what keeps the speculative bull case alive, even as near-term financials remain deeply negative.

AST SpaceMobile Q1 2026 results are the financials investors need to see clearly

Cramer's "speculative" qualifier matters here, and the Q1 2026 numbers explain exactly why he used it. AST SpaceMobile reported revenue of $14.7 million for Q1 2026, according to the company's May 11 earnings release.

The company reported a net loss of $191 million, which widened from $133.3 million in Q1 2025, primarily due to a satellite launch issue and increased infrastructure buildout costs. EPS came in at -$0.66 compared to a consensus estimate of -$0.23, according to Zacks. 

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Zacks data also shows that over the last four quarters, the company has not been able to surpass consensus EPS estimates.

The company holds $3.5 billion in cash and equivalents, providing a substantial runway to execute on the constellation buildout, according to company disclosures. Full-year 2026 revenue guidance was reaffirmed at $150 million to $200 million, primarily driven by mobile network partners and the U.S. government, according to AST Space Mobile.

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My read of those numbers is that this is genuinely a story where the near-term financials are almost irrelevant to the investment thesis. What matters is whether 45 BlueBird satellites get into orbit by the end of 2026 as targeted, whether the carrier partnerships convert to revenue at scale, and whether the technology performs commercially across diverse geographies. 

If those milestones are hit, the $150 million to $200 million guidance for 2026 becomes the floor for a much larger trajectory heading into 2027.

Paul Hennesy&solAnadolu via Getty Images

The risks Cramer's "speculative" label is pointing at

The SpaceMob retail following is real. Message volume on Stocktwits reportedly surged 669% around recent ASTS news. Heavy short interest combined with dedicated retail enthusiasm has historically produced sharp squeeze-driven moves when operational milestones land. 

That dynamic cuts both ways. It amplifies upside when things go right, and downside when they do not.

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The Q1 satellite launch issue that widened losses, according to AST SpaceMobile's Q1 2026 earnings transcript, is a reminder that space infrastructure is genuinely difficult. 

Deployment delays, technical failures, and regulatory hurdles are real variables that cannot be modeled away by the revenue targets, however compelling they may seem.

Defense and government contract opportunities are another win

Defense and government contract opportunities add a strategic dimension beyond the consumer thesis. 

The technology has been proposed as a potential GPS alternative and has drawn interest for military and emergency response applications, according to company disclosures. 

Some of AST SpaceMobile's latest contracts include:

• $30 million prime contract by the U.S. Space Development Agency for the HALO Europa Program, according to BusinessWire
• Prime contract position on the U.S. Missile Defense Agency SHIELD Program, BusinessWire confirmed
• Singapore’s Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) contracted to trial a space-based cellular broadband network, according to Space & Defense

Those contracts represent revenue diversification that reduces dependence on the consumer carrier ramp timeline.

Cramer's two-year frame is the right way to think about this. ASTS at $85 is not a stock you buy for next quarter's earnings. 

Think of it this way: It is a bet that the satellite constellation scales, the carrier agreements convert, and the direct-to-device technology finds the commercial traction the partnerships suggest it should. 

If it does, the two-year thesis he outlined looks exactly right. If the constellation encounters further deployment issues, the $3.5 billion cash runway buys time, but the stock will reflect the uncertainty.

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