Shares of C3.ai (NYSE:AI) fell 4.3% yesterday after Bloomberg reported the company’s job cuts that took place last week. AI stock initially touched an intra-day high of $31.70 when news of Sam Altman joining Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) pushed up shares of all artificial intelligence (AI) stocks. However, the shares immediately lost momentum following the report and closed at $28.04.
The company provides software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications that enable customers to rapidly develop, deploy, and operate large-scale Enterprise AI applications across any infrastructure.
C3.ai cited employee performance and cost-saving measures as reasons for laying off employees. The layoffs took place across various departments and were framed as individual, performance-related reviews. The report added that several workers received only one month’s worth of severance packages. The exact number of headcount reductions is not known at the moment. This is the second time this year that C3.ai has resorted to job cuts to streamline costs.
What is the Forecast for C3.ai Stock?
C3.ai stands on the cusp of the AI revolution. AI stock has gained 153.3% so far this year, thanks to the AI buzz. However, despite the optimism surrounding AI, analysts became wary of C3.ai stock when the company said it would no longer be able to become profitable in Fiscal 2024 owing to heavy spending on generative AI developments.
On TipRanks, C3.ai stock has a Hold consensus rating based on one Buy, six Holds, and three Sell ratings. The average C3.ai price forecast of $25 implies 10.8% downside potential from current levels.
