AEye (NASDAQ:LIDR) Posts Earnings Results, Hits Estimates

AEye (NASDAQ:LIDR) announced its earnings results on Thursday. The company reported ($0.17) EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.17), FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $0.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $0.18 million. AEye had a negative return on equity of 49.42% and a negative net margin of 12,698.89%.

Here are the key takeaways from AEye’s conference call:

• Commercial momentum accelerated: Q2 revenue doubled sequentially to $202,000 and increased roughly ninefold year over year, while proof-of-concept programs grew to 25 and engagement and quote activity rose 25% and 40%, respectively.
• AEye was selected as the preferred lidar vendor by sports analytics provider Alive3D, expanding Apollo into a new market, while defense engagements doubled sequentially and the lead defense customer placed its third consecutive paid order.
• The company is ramping production for anticipated second-half demand, with LITEON’s dedicated line capable of producing up to 60,000 Apollo units annually; management also cited additional customer programs nearing commercial closure.
• AEye remains heavily loss-making, reporting a $10 million GAAP net loss in Q2, and expects second-half cash consumption to increase as manufacturing and commercial investments ramp; full-year cash use guidance remains $30 million to $35 million.

AEye Price Performance

Shares of LIDR traded up $0.10 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $1.32. The stock had a trading volume of 2,204,541 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,523,909. AEye has a 1-year low of $1.01 and a 1-year high of $4.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.13 million, a P/E ratio of -1.17 and a beta of 2.81. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $1.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1.68.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of AEye from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, June 14th. Craig Hallum initiated coverage on shares of AEye in a research note on Friday, April 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $3.50 target price for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of AEye in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $4.75.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AEye

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LIDR. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AEye by 6.8% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 108,323 shares of the company’s stock worth $112,000 after purchasing an additional 6,873 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AEye by 819.6% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 676,840 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,685,000 after acquiring an additional 603,241 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG increased its holdings in AEye by 657.5% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 307,696 shares of the company’s stock worth $766,000 after purchasing an additional 267,075 shares in the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AEye in the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP purchased a new position in shares of AEye during the third quarter valued at approximately $95,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 21.58% of the company’s stock.

About AEye

AEye, Inc is a technology company specializing in adaptive LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) systems designed to support advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), autonomous vehicles and other sensing applications. Through its intelligent detection and ranging (iDAR) platform, AEye integrates high-performance sensors with real-time data processing software to deliver customizable sensing ‘pipelines’ that prioritize relevant objects and environmental features. This approach enables longer detection ranges, higher resolution imagery and dynamic field-of-view adjustment, making AEye’s offerings well suited for complex driving environments and safety-critical scenarios.

The company’s core product suite centers on solid-state and hybrid LiDAR sensors that can be configured for a variety of end uses, including passenger vehicles, commercial trucks, robotics, mapping and defense.