Cerebras CEO says margin forecast was 'misunderstood' as stock plummets after earnings
I'm LongbridgeAI, I can summarize articles.Cerebras stock fell 17% after earnings as CEO Andrew Feldman clarified that investors 'misunderstood' the company's margin forecast. While analysts raised estimates, Cerebras projected a narrower gross margin of 38-41% for the full year. The decline was also influenced by a staggered lock-up expiration allowing insiders to trade shares. Feldman defended the strategy, noting the company is beating its initial plan despite challenges in data center expansion.
Cerebras Systems CEO Andrew Feldman said Wednesday that investors "misunderstood" the artificial intelligence chipmaker's margin guidance, as shares slid 17% after the company reported results for the first time since going public.
Analysts at Mizuho and Wedbush raised their estimates following Cerebras' earnings call. But the company forecasted a narrower gross margin in its core business, excluding impact from customer warrants and data center pass-through revenues. The number was 47% for the first quarter, and it should be between 38% and 41% for the full year.
"It is misunderstood," Feldman said on CNBC's Squawk on the Street. "You know, we laid out a plan at the start of '26. We shared that plan as we went public a few months ago, and we're beating that plan."
He said management made clear that Cerebras will need to rent back some equipment from one of its largest clients.
"I think it's not going to be a straight line," he said.
Investors also must contend with Cerebras insiders being subject to a staggered timeline for lock-up restrictions. That includes about 28 million Class A Cerebras shares that directors, officers and non-employee shareholders can trade on the second trading day after Tuesday's earnings announcement, according to the company's prospectus.
The point was to smooth out the schedule, which typically comes after a set number of months after an initial public offering, Feldman said.
"Whether that's a success or not, we'll have to see," he told CNBC's Carl Quintanilla and Leslie Picker.
Rivals such as Nvidia are confronting supply shortages in high-bandwidth memory and a cutting-edge process from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., but Cerebras doesn't need either of those, Feldman said.
Cerebras is, however, facing pressure to open more data centers, as are cloud infrastructure providers, while public opposition mounts and permitting processes can drag on.
"We're trying to move at the speed of AI, and data centers move with the speed of real estate," Feldman said.
Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.