C3.ai (NYSE:AI) Stock Bumped Up to “Strong-Buy” by Northland Securities

Northland Securities upgraded shares of C3.ai (NYSE:AI) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note released on Monday morning,Zacks reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group reaffirmed an “underperform” rating on shares of C3.ai in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. Weiss Ratings raised C3.ai from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Citizens Jmp restated a “market perform” rating on shares of C3.ai in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Citigroup restated a “market perform” rating on shares of C3.ai in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $10.00 price objective on shares of C3.ai in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and seven have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $9.36.

C3.ai Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of AI opened at $11.58 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $1.86 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.76 and a beta of 2.11. C3.ai has a 12-month low of $7.68 and a 12-month high of $19.80. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $10.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $9.72.

C3.ai (NYSE:AI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, September 2nd. The company reported ($0.20) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $52.38 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $52.06 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.37) earnings per share. C3.ai’s revenue was down 25.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that C3.ai will post -2.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other C3.ai news, CEO Thomas Siebel sold 453,314 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.51, for a total transaction of $4,764,330.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 722,362 shares in the company, valued at $7,592,024.62. The trade was a 38.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Hitesh Lath sold 21,077 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.48, for a total transaction of $220,886.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 371,036 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,888,457.28. This represents 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. Insiders sold 1,117,809 shares of company stock valued at $11,724,230 in the last quarter. 19.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of C3.ai

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of C3.ai in the 2nd quarter valued at about $106,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP purchased a new stake in shares of C3.ai during the second quarter worth approximately $2,855,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in shares of C3.ai by 13.6% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 26,660 shares of the company’s stock worth $242,000 after purchasing an additional 3,185 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of C3.ai by 3.7% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 37,168 shares of the company’s stock worth $338,000 after purchasing an additional 1,310 shares during the period. Finally, Nykredit A S acquired a new stake in shares of C3.ai during the second quarter worth $84,000. 38.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

C3.ai News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting C3.ai this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Northland upgraded C3.ai to Outperform from Market Perform and raised its price target to $16 from $10. Analyst Mike Latimore cited a potential “new growth engine” and easier year-over-year comparisons, implying substantial upside from the prior closing price. C3.ai Soars 10% as Northland Upgrade Sees “New Growth Engine” and Easing Comps Northland analyst says it’s time to hop back into C3.ai stock
• Positive Sentiment: The Northland call helped C3.ai outperform several other “agentic” software names, highlighting improved investor sentiment toward the company relative to peers. SoundHound AI Slides 5% to Fresh Lows While C3.ai Climbs 4% on Northland Upgrade; UiPath Slips
• Positive Sentiment: A broader surge in enterprise software stocks provided an additional sector-level tailwind for C3.ai. C3.ai jumps 10% at the open as enterprise software stocks surge
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street Zen raised its rating on C3.ai to Hold, signaling a less negative stance but not a clearly bullish recommendation. C3.ai Raised to Hold at Wall Street Zen
• Negative Sentiment: UBS said C3.ai’s business needs several more quarters to stabilize, tempering the upgrade-driven optimism and emphasizing execution risk before a sustained recovery. C3.ai Needs More Quarters to Stabilize, UBS Says

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.