Serve Robotics Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:SERV)

Key Points

• Serve Robotics Inc. experienced an unusual surge in options trading, with 38,332 call options acquired—a 268% increase over its typical volume.
• The company's stock price rose by $1.61 to reach $11.88, with a market cap of $711.25 million and a PE ratio of -10.34.
• Recent insider transactions included COO Touraj Parang and CEO Ali Kashani selling shares, suggesting a modest reduction in their ownership stakes by 0.39% and 0.21% respectively.

Serve Robotics Inc. (NASDAQ:SERV - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Investors acquired 38,332 call options on the stock. Thisisanincreaseof268% compared to the typical volume of 10,422 call options.

Serve Robotics Price Performance

SERV traded up $1.61 on Wednesday, reaching $11.88. 13,283,372 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,030,240. The stock has a market cap of $711.25 million, a PE ratio of -10.34 and a beta of -0.11. Serve Robotics has a twelve month low of $4.66 and a twelve month high of $24.35. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $10.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $9.57.

Serve Robotics (NASDAQ:SERV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.36) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.23) by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $0.64 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $0.63 million. Serve Robotics had a negative return on equity of 36.47% and a negative net margin of 3,726.00%. As a group, research analysts predict that Serve Robotics will post -0.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Touraj Parang sold 5,565 shares of Serve Robotics stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.64, for a total value of $59,211.60. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 1,419,106 shares in the company, valued at $15,099,287.84. This trade represents a 0.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Ali Kashani sold 7,467 shares of Serve Robotics stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.74, for a total transaction of $80,195.58. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 3,598,737 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,650,435.38. This trade represents a 0.21% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 54,398 shares of company stock valued at $573,223. 21.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Serve Robotics

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new position in Serve Robotics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $499,000. Headlands Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in Serve Robotics by 58,553.6% in the 2nd quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 16,423 shares of the company's stock valued at $188,000 after purchasing an additional 16,395 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in Serve Robotics by 2,385.2% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 27,412 shares of the company's stock valued at $314,000 after purchasing an additional 26,309 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in Serve Robotics by 16.5% in the 2nd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 479,347 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,484,000 after purchasing an additional 67,770 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Militia Capital Partners LP acquired a new position in Serve Robotics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $924,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on SERV. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Serve Robotics in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. They issued an "overweight" rating on the stock. Wedbush began coverage on shares of Serve Robotics in a research report on Wednesday. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $15.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of Serve Robotics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Serve Robotics presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $17.75.

Serve Robotics Company Profile

Serve Robotics Inc designs, develops, and operates low-emission robots that serve people in public spaces with food delivery in the United States. It builds self-driving delivery robots. The company was formerly known as Patricia Acquisition Corp. and changed its name to Serve Robotics Inc in July 2023.

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