Traders Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Serve Robotics (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) saw some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders acquired 38,332 call options on the stock. Thisisanincreaseof268% compared to the typical volume of 10,422 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on SERV. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Serve Robotics in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. They set an "overweight" rating for the company. Wedbush began coverage on Serve Robotics in a research note on Wednesday. They set an "outperform" rating and a $15.00 target price for the company. Singular Research upgraded Serve Robotics to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn cut Serve Robotics from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $17.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Serve Robotics news, CFO Brian Read sold 10,216 shares of Serve Robotics stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.82, for a total value of $100,321.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 373,263 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,665,442.66. The trade was a 2.66% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, General Counsel Evan Dunn sold 5,000 shares of Serve Robotics stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.01, for a total value of $50,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 230,767 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,309,977.67. This represents a 2.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 53,103 shares of company stock worth $558,253 over the last 90 days. 5.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in Serve Robotics by 316.7% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,900 shares of the company's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 2,964 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Serve Robotics during the first quarter worth about $49,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in Serve Robotics during the first quarter worth about $49,000. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. purchased a new position in Serve Robotics during the second quarter worth about $55,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Serve Robotics by 13.8% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,728 shares of the company's stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 1,545 shares during the period.

Serve Robotics Price Performance

Shares of SERV traded down $0.15 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $11.10. 6,268,033 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,903,057. The stock has a market capitalization of $664.69 million, a PE ratio of -9.65 and a beta of -0.11. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $10.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $9.39. Serve Robotics has a 52-week low of $4.66 and a 52-week high of $24.35.

Serve Robotics (NASDAQ:SERV - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.36) earnings per share (EPS) 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 analysts' expectations of $0.63 million. Serve Robotics had a negative return on equity of 36.47% and a negative net margin of 3,726.00%. Equities research analysts predict that Serve Robotics will post -0.98 earnings per share for the current year.

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.