D-Wave Quantum (NYSE:QBTS) Shares Up 15.8% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Shares jumped 15.8% intraday to as high as $17.08 on heavy volume (42.7M, +52% vs. average), showing strong trading interest even as the stock remains below its 200-day SMA of $24.52.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but tilted positive: the consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $36.50 (14 Buys, 2 Sells), though several firms have recently cut targets or issued downgrades.
• Fundamentals remain challenged—Q reported EPS of -$0.09 (miss) on $2.75M revenue (up 21.7% YoY) with negative margins and ROE—while insiders have sold shares recently and institutional investors own 42.47% of the company (notably Vanguard and UBS).

D-Wave Quantum Inc. (NYSE:QBTS - Get Free Report)'s share price shot up 15.8% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $17.08 and last traded at $16.97. 42,687,528 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 52% from the average session volume of 28,009,891 shares. The stock had previously closed at $14.65.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on QBTS. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of D-Wave Quantum in a report on Friday, March 27th. Mizuho decreased their price target on D-Wave Quantum from $46.00 to $40.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 27th. Zacks Research cut D-Wave Quantum from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Needham & Company LLC reduced their target price on D-Wave Quantum from $48.00 to $40.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities restated a "buy" rating and set a $43.00 target price on shares of D-Wave Quantum in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $36.50.

D-Wave Quantum Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 42.25, a current ratio of 42.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The stock has a market cap of $6.28 billion, a P/E ratio of -15.43 and a beta of 1.78. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $17.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $24.52.

D-Wave Quantum (NYSE:QBTS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.05) by ($0.04). D-Wave Quantum had a negative return on equity of 58.58% and a negative net margin of 1,444.10%.The company had revenue of $2.75 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.74 million. The business's quarterly revenue was up 21.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that D-Wave Quantum Inc. will post -0.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO John M. Markovich sold 10,706 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.63, for a total transaction of $188,746.78. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 1,451,427 shares of the company's stock, valued at $25,588,658.01. This trade represents a 0.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Alan E. Baratz sold 35,013 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.06, for a total value of $982,464.78. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,598,150 shares in the company, valued at approximately $72,904,089. This represents a 1.33% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 72,898 shares of company stock worth $1,749,054. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On D-Wave Quantum

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of D-Wave Quantum by 41.2% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,454,869 shares of the company's stock worth $950,220,000 after purchasing an additional 11,218,255 shares during the period. UBS Group AG raised its position in shares of D-Wave Quantum by 541.6% during the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 12,089,703 shares of the company's stock worth $298,737,000 after purchasing an additional 10,205,427 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of D-Wave Quantum by 11.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,394,726 shares of the company's stock worth $220,085,000 after purchasing an additional 866,405 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of D-Wave Quantum by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,707,085 shares of the company's stock worth $201,540,000 after purchasing an additional 385,809 shares during the period. Finally, Marex Group plc raised its position in D-Wave Quantum by 74.9% in the 4th quarter. Marex Group plc now owns 4,592,656 shares of the company's stock valued at $120,098,000 after buying an additional 1,966,500 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.47% of the company's stock.

About D-Wave Quantum

D-Wave Quantum Inc NYSE: QBTS develops and provides quantum computing systems, software and services focused on quantum annealing technology. Headquartered in Burnaby, British Columbia, D-Wave designs specialized processors that leverage quantum mechanics to solve complex optimization and sampling problems. Since its founding in 1999 by physicists including Geordie Rose, the company has pursued the development of commercially viable quantum hardware and accompanying software tools.

The company's product portfolio centers on its quantum annealers, which are complemented by hybrid solvers that integrate classical and quantum computing resources.

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