Shares of autonomous driving technology company Mobiley MBLY 11.42% jumped higher in midday trading Wednesday. Comments from an investment conference appear to be why. Mobileye stock was up 14.5% in midday trading at $28.58, while the S&P 500 SPX 0.51% and Nasdaq Composite COMP 0.58% were up 0.8% and 1%, respectively. Shares were flat in the morning until 11:05 a.m., when they took off, adding about $3.
“Mobileye reiterated prior expectations for first quarter 2024 EyeQ volumes of about 3.4 million units, and that second-quarter 2024 units will at least double versus first quarter,” wrote Baird analyst Luke Junk in a Wednesday report.
EyeQ is Mobileye’s system used by dozens of auto makers that helps enable driver assistance and autonomous driving applications. “Importantly, the company cited a significant number of customer commitments for second quarter 2024 backing this view,” added Junk.
Stability in the outlook is a relief to investors. Mobileye shares fell almost 25% after the company warned first-quarter sales would fall short of Wall Street estimates in early January. Part of the problem was high channel inventories which led to a slowdown in customer orders.
First-quarter sales are expected to come in at around $230 million. Before the warning, analysts were projecting closer to $560 million. Shares were trading at almost $40 apiece before the warning. Wednesday’s gains put them just above $28. There is a way to go for the stock to finish its recovery.
Junk rates shares Buy and has a $40 price target for the stock. Overall, 84% of analysts covering the company rate the shares a Buy, according to FactSet. The average Buy-rating ratio for stocks in the S&P 500 is about 55%. The average analyst price target for Mobileye stock is about $37.50 a share.
