A short report surfaced, citing a number of risks for SoundHound AI investors.
To add insult to injury, a Wall Street analyst double downgraded the stock, citing some of the same issues.
Shares of SoundHound AI continue to fall 8% in morning trading on Friday after a 15.76% decline on Thursday.
The catalyst that drove the artificial intelligence (AI) specialist lower was a short report and a rare double downgrade by a Wall Street analyst.
Worth $1?
A short report issued by Capybara Research titled "Lies, Damned Lies, and Cheeseburger 'AI'" suggests that SoundHound AI is a "failing company peddling lies and deception." It also set a price target of $1.
The report includes a laundry list of issues. Among them, it suggests SoundHound's voice recognition technology is a commodity service that isn't superior to comparable products by Amazon's Alexa or Apple's Siri, among others. The report also cites a growing number of customer defections and SoundHound's mounting losses, with "no clear path to profitability."
Perhaps the most troubling issue is that the company's backlog may be misleading. SoundHound recently revised its definition, saying the subscription backlog "refers to potential revenue achievable," so there's no contractual obligation.
Perhaps not coincidentally, analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald issued a rare double downgrade on the stock today to underweight (sell) from overweight (buy). They set a price target of $4.90, roughly 38% below Wednesday's closing price.
The analysts say the valuation "cannot be justified," while citing a number of the same risks listed in the short report. These include the "opaqueness" of SoundHound's operating model, slowing growth, customer losses, and increasing competition from larger rivals.
Insider sell
Keyvan Mohajer, CEO and 10% Owner of SoundHound AI Inc, has sold 48,837 shares of the company on March 19, 2024, according to a recent SEC filing. The transaction was executed at an average price of $8.37 per share, indicating a total sale amount of approximately $408,837.79.
Over the past year, the insider, Keyvan Mohajer, has sold a total of 505,504 shares of SoundHound AI Inc and has not made any share purchases. This latest transaction continues a trend of insider sales at the company, with a total of 48 insider sells and no insider buys occurring over the past year.
Michael Zagorsek, Chief Operating Officer of SoundHound AI Inc, has sold 24,105 shares of the company on March 19, 2024, according to a recent SEC Filing. The transaction was executed at an average price of $8.37 per share, resulting in a total value of $201,718.85.
Over the past year, the insider, Michael Zagorsek, has sold a total of 91,033 shares of SoundHound AI Inc (NASDAQ:SOUN) and has not made any purchases of the stock. The recent sale by the insider is part of a series of transactions that have taken place over the last twelve months.
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