C3.ai's CEO Return: A Potential Turnaround?
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: 36 minutes ago
0mins
Source: Fool
- Significant Decline: C3.ai's stock has plummeted 59% over the past year, reflecting ongoing sales struggles in the AI solutions market, with recent quarterly revenue at $51.6 million, a stark drop from $108.7 million a year prior, indicating severe growth challenges for the company.
- Impact of Executive Changes: Founder and CEO Thomas Siebel stepped down last year due to health issues, with Stephen Ehikian taking over on September 1, 2025; however, the company failed to improve performance during this transition, even considering a sale, highlighting the negative impact of management changes on strategic direction.
- Hope with Siebel's Return: Siebel returned as CEO on May 8, and with his health improving, there is renewed market optimism about his ability to revitalize sales growth, although the company still needs to demonstrate strong product demand in a competitive AI landscape.
- Ongoing Profitability Risks: While C3.ai's stock may appear cheap with a market cap around $1.4 billion, the company remains unprofitable and lacks growth in a fiercely competitive AI market, necessitating careful evaluation of its future profitability and market demand before investing.
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Analyst Views on AI
Wall Street analysts forecast AI stock price to rise
13 Analyst Rating
4 Buy
6 Hold
3 Sell
Hold
Current: 9.330
Low
18.00
Averages
30.45
High
50.00
Current: 9.330
Low
18.00
Averages
30.45
High
50.00
About AI
C3.ai, Inc. is an enterprise artificial intelligence (AI) application software company. The Company has built a solution that enables its customers to rapidly develop, deploy, and operate enterprise AI applications. It offers families of software solutions, which it collectively refers to as its C3 AI software: The C3 AI Platform, C3 AI Applications, and C3 Generative AI. The C3 AI Platform, its core technology, is a comprehensive, end-to-end application development and runtime environment that is designed to allow its customers to rapidly design, develop, and deploy Enterprise AI applications of any type. Its C3 AI Applications, built using the C3 AI Platform, is a portfolio of pre-built, extensible, industry-specific, and application-specific software-as-a-service offerings (SaaS) Enterprise AI applications that can be rapidly installed and deployed. Its C3 Generative AI combines the utility of large language models, generative AI, reinforcement learning, natural language processing.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
C3.ai's CEO Return: A Potential Turnaround?
- Significant Decline: C3.ai's stock has plummeted 59% over the past year, reflecting ongoing sales struggles in the AI solutions market, with recent quarterly revenue at $51.6 million, a stark drop from $108.7 million a year prior, indicating severe growth challenges for the company.
- Impact of Executive Changes: Founder and CEO Thomas Siebel stepped down last year due to health issues, with Stephen Ehikian taking over on September 1, 2025; however, the company failed to improve performance during this transition, even considering a sale, highlighting the negative impact of management changes on strategic direction.
- Hope with Siebel's Return: Siebel returned as CEO on May 8, and with his health improving, there is renewed market optimism about his ability to revitalize sales growth, although the company still needs to demonstrate strong product demand in a competitive AI landscape.
- Ongoing Profitability Risks: While C3.ai's stock may appear cheap with a market cap around $1.4 billion, the company remains unprofitable and lacks growth in a fiercely competitive AI market, necessitating careful evaluation of its future profitability and market demand before investing.
See More
Thomas Siebel Returns as CEO of C3.ai Amid Struggles
- Declining Performance: C3.ai's stock has plummeted 59% over the past year, indicating ongoing sales declines despite offering over 100 AI solutions, failing to achieve expected growth in a booming AI market.
- Deteriorating Financials: The company's preliminary fourth-quarter results revealed revenue of $51.6 million for the period ending April 30, a significant drop from $108.7 million a year ago, highlighting severe challenges in a competitive landscape.
- Leadership Changes: Founder and former CEO Thomas Siebel stepped down last year due to health issues, and his successor Stephen Ehikian has not improved performance; Siebel's return as CEO on May 8 raises market hopes for a turnaround.
- Profitability Risks: Although C3.ai's market cap is around $1.4 billion and its stock appears cheap, the company remains unprofitable, facing immense pressure to demonstrate product demand in a fiercely competitive AI market.
See More
A10 Networks and Micron Technology See Active Options Trading
- Surge in A10 Options Trading: A10 Networks Inc (Ticker: ATEN) saw options trading volume reach 15,628 contracts today, representing approximately 160.1% of its average daily trading volume, indicating strong market interest in its future performance.
- High Demand for Call Options: Notably, the $35 strike call option has seen 8,512 contracts traded today, representing about 851,200 shares of ATEN, suggesting a significant bullish sentiment among investors regarding the stock's potential upside.
- Micron Technology Options Activity: Micron Technology Inc (Ticker: MU) recorded an options trading volume of 771,762 contracts today, equating to approximately 151.9% of its average daily trading volume, reflecting strong investor interest in its stock.
- Active Call Options Trading: The $800 strike call option for MU has seen 43,603 contracts traded today, representing around 4.4 million shares of MU, indicating investor confidence in the company's future growth prospects.
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C3.ai Founder Returns: Can It Reverse the Downtrend?
- Significant Stock Decline: C3.ai's stock has plummeted by 36% this year, despite overall gains in the AI sector, indicating a potential loss of competitive edge that may weaken investor confidence.
- Impact of Leadership Change: The departure of founder and CEO Thomas Siebel due to health issues led to an unexpected revenue collapse, resulting in lost or delayed lucrative deals and negatively affecting the company's market position.
- Severe Financial Condition: C3.ai reported total revenue of $250.3 million for fiscal 2026, a 35% decline year-over-year, with a net loss of $498 million, nearly a 70% increase from the previous year, putting the company under financial strain and necessitating a swift return to profitability to avoid further losses.
- Uncertain Future Outlook: While Siebel's return as CEO is seen as a positive development, analysts predict a further 9% decline in revenue for fiscal 2027, prompting investors to exercise caution until the company demonstrates its ability to achieve sustainable revenue growth.
See More
C3.ai Founder Returns, Potential for Financial Turnaround
- Founder Return: Thomas Siebel's return as CEO on May 8 could spark a turnaround for C3.ai's financial performance, particularly after a sharp decline in sales during his absence, highlighting his critical role in the company's success.
- Deteriorating Financials: C3.ai reported total revenue of $250.3 million for fiscal 2026, a 35% decline year-over-year, with a net loss of $498 million, reflecting a nearly 70% increase from fiscal 2025, indicating severe financial challenges ahead.
- Market Reaction: Despite a 36% drop in C3.ai's stock this year, its price-to-sales ratio has fallen to 3.9, near its lowest since going public, suggesting a cautious market outlook on its future growth, prompting investors to watch for signs of sustainable revenue recovery.
- Technological Edge: C3.ai's 40 turnkey software applications facilitate AI adoption for clients, particularly in financial services, where its anti-money laundering application has achieved a 200% increase in correctly identified suspicious transactions and an 85% reduction in false positives, showcasing its competitive technological advantage.
See More
Investing in Small-Cap Stocks: Risks and Opportunities
- Elastic Underperformance: Elastic (ESTC), with a market cap of $5.58 billion, has seen an average billings growth of only 12.5% over the past year, indicating waning customer interest, and is projected to experience a sales growth slowdown to 13.6% in the next 12 months.
- C3.ai Weak Demand: C3.ai (AI), valued at $1.27 billion, has faced an average billings decline of 11.2% over the past year, with a gross margin of 43.5% reflecting high service costs, raising doubts about the long-term viability of its cash-burning business model.
- First Bancorp Growth Issues: First Bancorp (FBNC), with a market cap of $2.43 billion, reported only 2% annual revenue growth over the past two years, and its net interest margin of 3.1% is significantly below that of other banks, indicating poor loan profitability and flat earnings per share.
- Market Opportunity Analysis: While the small-cap market presents high risks, it also offers potential opportunities, prompting investors to focus on companies with greater growth potential to avoid inefficient investments like ESTC, AI, and FBNC.
See More
C3.ai's CEO Return: A Potential Turnaround?
- Significant Decline: C3.ai's stock has plummeted 59% over the past year, reflecting ongoing sales struggles in the AI solutions market, with recent quarterly revenue at $51.6 million, a stark drop from $108.7 million a year prior, indicating severe growth challenges for the company.
- Impact of Executive Changes: Founder and CEO Thomas Siebel stepped down last year due to health issues, with Stephen Ehikian taking over on September 1, 2025; however, the company failed to improve performance during this transition, even considering a sale, highlighting the negative impact of management changes on strategic direction.
- Hope with Siebel's Return: Siebel returned as CEO on May 8, and with his health improving, there is renewed market optimism about his ability to revitalize sales growth, although the company still needs to demonstrate strong product demand in a competitive AI landscape.
- Ongoing Profitability Risks: While C3.ai's stock may appear cheap with a market cap around $1.4 billion, the company remains unprofitable and lacks growth in a fiercely competitive AI market, necessitating careful evaluation of its future profitability and market demand before investing.
See More
Thomas Siebel Returns as CEO of C3.ai Amid Struggles
- Declining Performance: C3.ai's stock has plummeted 59% over the past year, indicating ongoing sales declines despite offering over 100 AI solutions, failing to achieve expected growth in a booming AI market.
- Deteriorating Financials: The company's preliminary fourth-quarter results revealed revenue of $51.6 million for the period ending April 30, a significant drop from $108.7 million a year ago, highlighting severe challenges in a competitive landscape.
- Leadership Changes: Founder and former CEO Thomas Siebel stepped down last year due to health issues, and his successor Stephen Ehikian has not improved performance; Siebel's return as CEO on May 8 raises market hopes for a turnaround.
- Profitability Risks: Although C3.ai's market cap is around $1.4 billion and its stock appears cheap, the company remains unprofitable, facing immense pressure to demonstrate product demand in a fiercely competitive AI market.
See More
A10 Networks and Micron Technology See Active Options Trading
- Surge in A10 Options Trading: A10 Networks Inc (Ticker: ATEN) saw options trading volume reach 15,628 contracts today, representing approximately 160.1% of its average daily trading volume, indicating strong market interest in its future performance.
- High Demand for Call Options: Notably, the $35 strike call option has seen 8,512 contracts traded today, representing about 851,200 shares of ATEN, suggesting a significant bullish sentiment among investors regarding the stock's potential upside.
- Micron Technology Options Activity: Micron Technology Inc (Ticker: MU) recorded an options trading volume of 771,762 contracts today, equating to approximately 151.9% of its average daily trading volume, reflecting strong investor interest in its stock.
- Active Call Options Trading: The $800 strike call option for MU has seen 43,603 contracts traded today, representing around 4.4 million shares of MU, indicating investor confidence in the company's future growth prospects.
See More
C3.ai Founder Returns: Can It Reverse the Downtrend?
- Significant Stock Decline: C3.ai's stock has plummeted by 36% this year, despite overall gains in the AI sector, indicating a potential loss of competitive edge that may weaken investor confidence.
- Impact of Leadership Change: The departure of founder and CEO Thomas Siebel due to health issues led to an unexpected revenue collapse, resulting in lost or delayed lucrative deals and negatively affecting the company's market position.
- Severe Financial Condition: C3.ai reported total revenue of $250.3 million for fiscal 2026, a 35% decline year-over-year, with a net loss of $498 million, nearly a 70% increase from the previous year, putting the company under financial strain and necessitating a swift return to profitability to avoid further losses.
- Uncertain Future Outlook: While Siebel's return as CEO is seen as a positive development, analysts predict a further 9% decline in revenue for fiscal 2027, prompting investors to exercise caution until the company demonstrates its ability to achieve sustainable revenue growth.
See More
C3.ai Founder Returns, Potential for Financial Turnaround
- Founder Return: Thomas Siebel's return as CEO on May 8 could spark a turnaround for C3.ai's financial performance, particularly after a sharp decline in sales during his absence, highlighting his critical role in the company's success.
- Deteriorating Financials: C3.ai reported total revenue of $250.3 million for fiscal 2026, a 35% decline year-over-year, with a net loss of $498 million, reflecting a nearly 70% increase from fiscal 2025, indicating severe financial challenges ahead.
- Market Reaction: Despite a 36% drop in C3.ai's stock this year, its price-to-sales ratio has fallen to 3.9, near its lowest since going public, suggesting a cautious market outlook on its future growth, prompting investors to watch for signs of sustainable revenue recovery.
- Technological Edge: C3.ai's 40 turnkey software applications facilitate AI adoption for clients, particularly in financial services, where its anti-money laundering application has achieved a 200% increase in correctly identified suspicious transactions and an 85% reduction in false positives, showcasing its competitive technological advantage.
See More
Investing in Small-Cap Stocks: Risks and Opportunities
- Elastic Underperformance: Elastic (ESTC), with a market cap of $5.58 billion, has seen an average billings growth of only 12.5% over the past year, indicating waning customer interest, and is projected to experience a sales growth slowdown to 13.6% in the next 12 months.
- C3.ai Weak Demand: C3.ai (AI), valued at $1.27 billion, has faced an average billings decline of 11.2% over the past year, with a gross margin of 43.5% reflecting high service costs, raising doubts about the long-term viability of its cash-burning business model.
- First Bancorp Growth Issues: First Bancorp (FBNC), with a market cap of $2.43 billion, reported only 2% annual revenue growth over the past two years, and its net interest margin of 3.1% is significantly below that of other banks, indicating poor loan profitability and flat earnings per share.
- Market Opportunity Analysis: While the small-cap market presents high risks, it also offers potential opportunities, prompting investors to focus on companies with greater growth potential to avoid inefficient investments like ESTC, AI, and FBNC.
See More
