Traders Buy High Volume of Call Options on C3.ai (NYSE:AI)

C3.ai, Inc. (NYSE:AI) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Friday. Stock investors bought 199,761 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 403% compared to the typical daily volume of 39,728 call options.

C3.ai Price Performance

AI opened at $11.32 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $10.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $9.81. C3.ai has a 1 year low of $7.68 and a 1 year high of $18.79. The stock has a market cap of $1.82 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.68 and a beta of 2.11.

C3.ai (NYSE:AI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 2nd. The company reported ($0.20) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.26) by $0.06. C3.ai had a negative net margin of 192.10% and a negative return on equity of 61.25%. The firm had revenue of $52.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $52.06 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.37) earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 25.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that C3.ai will post -2.20 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Northland Securities set a $16.00 price objective on shares of C3.ai and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Citigroup reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of C3.ai in a report on Thursday, September 3rd. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of C3.ai in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of C3.ai from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, October 11th. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $7.00 price target on shares of C3.ai in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and seven have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $9.36.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Thomas Siebel sold 435,363 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.82, for a total value of $5,145,990.66. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 722,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,538,318.84. This represents a 37.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Hitesh Lath sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.37, for a total transaction of $247,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 305,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,775,942.50. This represents a 6.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 1,573,172 shares of company stock worth $17,117,621. 19.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On C3.ai

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Western Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of C3.ai in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc acquired a new position in C3.ai in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its position in C3.ai by 34.0% during the second quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 6,145 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 1,560 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in C3.ai by 1,510.1% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 6,859 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 6,433 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nykredit A S purchased a new position in C3.ai during the second quarter worth approximately $84,000. 38.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About C3.ai

C3.ai, Inc is an enterprise artificial intelligence software company that develops applications and tools designed to help organizations use AI and machine learning to analyze data, automate processes and support business decision-making. The company’s offerings are intended for large commercial enterprises, government agencies and other organizations managing complex operational and data environments.

Its product portfolio includes the C3 AI Platform, which provides capabilities for developing, deploying and operating AI applications, as well as prebuilt enterprise applications.