C3.ai: A Most Uninteresting Development

One is obliged to report a slight flutter in the C3.ai (AI +3.41%) share price this morning. A mere 2.1% uptick, you understand, but enough to warrant a raised eyebrow. The cause? Whispers of a potential entanglement with Automation Anywhere (AA). Merger talks, they say. Honestly, the sheer banality of it all.

Details, If One Must

Let us not descend into excessive detail, shall we? The situation, as always, is shrouded in a fog of speculation. Automation Anywhere, a private entity, enjoyed a rather inflated valuation of $6.8 billion back in 2019. Its current worth is, naturally, a matter of conjecture. However, given C3.ai’s comparatively modest $1.8 billion valuation (a mere $1.1 billion net of cash), any transaction would likely involve AA acquiring C3. A takeover, if you will, rather than a harmonious union.

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A Buying Opportunity? Don’t Be Absurd

One wonders, naturally, if this constitutes a buying opportunity. The answer, my dears, is a resounding “no.” Buying C3.ai on the strength of such flimsy rumors is, frankly, rather desperate. One would simply find oneself owning C3.ai stock, which, let’s be frank, is hardly a prize.

The company has been steadily haemorrhaging money for the past five years. A rather alarming $381 million in losses over the last twelve months, to be precise. Analysts, those gloomy prophets of financial doom, foresee no immediate improvement. Projections extending to 2028 suggest a continuation of this rather tiresome trend.

Granted, C3.ai possesses a rather substantial cash reserve – $675 million, to be exact. With an annual cash burn of $93 million, they could theoretically stagger along for another seven years. However, unless Automation Anywhere intervenes, they are likely to continue losing money for the duration. A truly dismal prospect. One almost feels sorry for the accountants.

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2026-01-28 18:42