Why C3.ai (AI) Stock Is Trading Lower Today

What Happened?

Shares of enterprise AI software company C3.ai (NYSE:AI) fell 21.1% in the afternoon session after it reported disappointing fourth-quarter 2025 results that missed analyst expectations and issued a weak forecast for the upcoming quarter. 

For the fourth quarter, C3.ai posted revenue of $53.26 million, a 46.1% decrease from the previous year and well below the $75.66 million analysts had anticipated. The company also reported a larger-than-expected GAAP loss of $0.94 per share, missing the consensus estimate of a $0.76 loss. Looking ahead, C3.ai projected its first-quarter 2026 revenue to be around $50 million, falling significantly short of the $78.01 million analysts expected. The results highlighted slowing demand and a challenging cost structure, as its operating margin worsened from -88.7% to -264% year on year.

The stock market overreacts to news, and big price drops can present good opportunities to buy high-quality stocks. Is now the time to buy C3.ai? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.

What Is The Market Telling Us

C3.ai’s shares are extremely volatile and have had 35 moves greater than 5% over the last year. But moves this big are rare even for C3.ai and indicate this news significantly impacted the market’s perception of the business.

The previous big move we wrote about was 9 days ago when the stock dropped 3.3% on the news that investor fears over artificial intelligence disrupting the software industry sparked a broad sell-off. The anxiety stemmed from the rapid adoption of new 'agentic AI' tools, which some investors believed could dismantle traditional Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) business models. This 'AI Panic' led to indiscriminate selling across the sector. The market move reflected growing concerns about the downside of the AI boom for established software companies.

C3.ai is down 41.3% since the beginning of the year, and at $8.07 per share, it is trading 72.3% below its 52-week high of $29.16 from July 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of C3.ai’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $71.71.

Microsoft, Alphabet, Coca-Cola, Monster Beverage—all began as under-the-radar growth stories riding a massive trend. We’ve identified the next one: a profitable AI semiconductor play Wall Street is still overlooking.Go here for access to our full report, it’s free.