D-Wave Quantum's (QBTS) Buy Rating Reaffirmed at Needham & Company LLC

Key Points

• Needham & Company reaffirmed a "buy" rating on D‑Wave with a $48.00 price target (implying about an 84.7% upside), while overall analyst coverage is tilted bullish—13 Buys, 1 Hold, 1 Sell—with a consensus "Moderate Buy" price target of $37.86.
• The stock opened around $25.99 with a $9.10 billion market cap; D‑Wave remains unprofitable (negative P/E and margins) despite quarterly revenue rising 105.6% year‑over‑year and analysts forecasting about -0.41 EPS for the fiscal year.
• Insider selling has been notable: CEO Alan Baratz sold 806,288 shares (~$23.3M) and the CFO sold 200,000 shares (~$4.6M), with insiders offloading 2,346,916 shares worth $65.6M over the past 90 days while insiders still own about 3.20% of the company.

D-Wave Quantum (NYSE:QBTS - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating reiterated by equities researchers at Needham & Company LLC in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $48.00 price objective on the stock. Needham & Company LLC's price objective points to a potential upside of 84.67% from the company's previous close.

QBTS has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on D-Wave Quantum in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $44.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of D-Wave Quantum in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wedbush initiated coverage on D-Wave Quantum in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $35.00 price objective for the company. Benchmark increased their target price on D-Wave Quantum from $20.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Roth Mkm set a $40.00 price target on shares of D-Wave Quantum in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $37.86.

D-Wave Quantum Trading Down 3.9%

NYSE QBTS opened at $25.99 on Thursday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $26.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $24.32. The stock has a market cap of $9.10 billion, a P/E ratio of -19.25 and a beta of 1.57. D-Wave Quantum has a 52 week low of $4.45 and a 52 week high of $46.75. The company has a current ratio of 54.68, a quick ratio of 54.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

D-Wave Quantum (NYSE:QBTS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported ($0.05) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.07) by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $3.74 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.03 million. D-Wave Quantum had a negative net margin of 1,651.81% and a negative return on equity of 97.58%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 105.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that D-Wave Quantum will post -0.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other D-Wave Quantum news, CEO Alan E. Baratz sold 806,288 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.87, for a total transaction of $23,277,534.56. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 2,801,265 shares in the company, valued at approximately $80,872,520.55. The trade was a 22.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO John M. Markovich sold 200,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.94, for a total transaction of $4,588,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 1,482,874 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $34,017,129.56. The trade was a 11.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,346,916 shares of company stock worth $65,591,314. 3.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On D-Wave Quantum

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new position in D-Wave Quantum in the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Ancora Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of D-Wave Quantum in the third quarter worth $30,000. Financial Consulate Inc. acquired a new position in D-Wave Quantum during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in D-Wave Quantum by 227.3% in the 2nd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,206 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,532 shares during the period. Finally, Gables Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in D-Wave Quantum in the 2nd quarter valued at $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.47% of the company's stock.

D-Wave Quantum Company Profile

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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