Serve Robotics Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:SERV)

Serve Robotics Inc. (NASDAQ:SERV) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Investors acquired 17,465 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 53% compared to the average volume of 11,390 call options.

Insider Activity at Serve Robotics

In related news, CEO Ali Kashani sold 31,791 shares of Serve Robotics stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.39, for a total value of $362,099.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,346,998 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,122,307.22. The trade was a 0.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director James Buckly Jordan sold 64,408 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.57, for a total transaction of $551,976.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 449,052 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,848,375.64. The trade was a 12.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 253,027 shares of company stock valued at $3,309,166. 21.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SERV. Yong Rong HK Asset Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Serve Robotics in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $9,636,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in Serve Robotics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $9,066,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Serve Robotics by 128.1% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 130,853 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,041,000 after purchasing an additional 73,496 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp acquired a new stake in Serve Robotics in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $333,000. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Serve Robotics in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $262,000.

Serve Robotics Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SERV traded up $2.37 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $20.19. 12,241,440 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,846,638. The business’s fifty day moving average is $13.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.75. Serve Robotics has a one year low of $1.77 and a one year high of $24.35.

Serve Robotics (NASDAQ:SERV) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported ($0.20) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of ($0.20). The firm had revenue of $0.22 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $0.36 million. Serve Robotics had a negative net margin of 1,972.12% and a negative return on equity of 184.60%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Serve Robotics will post -0.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on SERV shares. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH started coverage on shares of Serve Robotics in a research report on Monday, October 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $16.00 price target on the stock. Northland Securities boosted their price objective on shares of Serve Robotics from $16.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Serve Robotics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Northland Capmk raised shares of Serve Robotics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Serve Robotics has a consensus rating of “Strong Buy” and an average price target of $19.50.

Serve Robotics Company Profile

Serve Robotics Inc designs, develops, and operates low-emission robots that serve people in public spaces with food delivery in the United States. It builds self-driving delivery robots. The company was formerly known as Patricia Acquisition Corp. and changed its name to Serve Robotics Inc in July 2023.