C3.ai Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:AI)

Key Points

• C3.ai saw exceptionally high options activity: Traders purchased 199,500 call options, 412% above the typical daily volume.
• Company insiders sold 1.22 million shares worth approximately $12.6 million over the past three months, while institutional ownership stands at 38.96%.
• C3.ai reported a quarterly loss of $0.20 per share on $52.38 million in revenue, though it beat estimates; analysts maintain a broadly negative outlook, with an average “Reduce” rating and an $8.70 price target.

C3.ai, Inc. (NYSE:AI - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading on Friday. Traders purchased 199,500 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 412% compared to the typical daily volume of 38,935 call options.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Stephen Ehikian sold 50,542 shares of C3.ai stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.45, for a total value of $477,621.90. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 651,130 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,153,178.50. The trade was a 7.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Hitesh Lath sold 21,077 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.48, for a total value of $220,886.96. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 371,036 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,888,457.28. The trade was a 5.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last three months, insiders sold 1,216,970 shares of company stock worth $12,628,241. Corporate insiders own 19.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of C3.ai

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AI. Western Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of C3.ai in the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc purchased a new position in shares of C3.ai during the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. acquired a new stake in C3.ai in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $71,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC increased its holdings in C3.ai by 34.0% in the 2nd quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 6,145 shares of the company's stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 1,560 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in C3.ai by 1,510.1% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 6,859 shares of the company's stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 6,433 shares during the period. 38.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

C3.ai Trading Down 2.7%

C3.ai stock opened at $10.49 on Friday. C3.ai has a 12-month low of $7.68 and a 12-month high of $20.22. The stock has a market cap of $1.63 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.41 and a beta of 2.10. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $9.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $9.48.

C3.ai (NYSE:AI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 2nd. The company reported ($0.20) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.26) by $0.06. The business had revenue of $52.38 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $52.06 million. C3.ai had a negative net margin of 192.10% and a negative return on equity of 61.25%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 25.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.37) EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that C3.ai will post -2.22 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on AI. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $15.00 target price on shares of C3.ai in a research report on Thursday, June 4th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of C3.ai from $6.00 to $7.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 4th. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $10.00 price objective on shares of C3.ai in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of C3.ai from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, September 13th. Finally, UBS Group reissued an "underperform" rating on shares of C3.ai in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and seven have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $8.70.

C3.ai Company Profile

C3.ai, Inc develops enterprise artificial intelligence software and applications for organizations in a range of industries. Its technology is designed to help businesses use data, machine learning and predictive analytics to address operational, financial and strategic challenges.

The company's offerings include the C3 AI Platform, which provides tools for developing, deploying and operating AI applications, as well as prebuilt applications for use cases such as predictive maintenance, fraud detection, supply-chain optimization, customer engagement, energy management and regulatory compliance.

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