D-Wave Quantum (NASDAQ:QBTS) Shares Gap Up - Here's Why

Key Points

• D-Wave Quantum shares jumped 8.9%, opening at $17.70 versus a prior close of $16.58 and later trading near $18.08 on volume of roughly 9.2 million shares.
• Analysts remain broadly optimistic, with 13 Buy ratings, two Holds and one Sell; the stock has a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $36.27.
• The company’s latest quarter fell short of expectations, reporting a $0.10 per-share loss and $3.08 million in revenue versus estimates of a $0.08 loss and $4.03 million in revenue. Insiders sold 262,631 shares worth about $6.7 million over the past quarter.

Shares of D-Wave Quantum Inc. (NASDAQ:QBTS - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $16.58, but opened at $17.70. D-Wave Quantum shares last traded at $18.0790, with a volume of 9,177,186 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on QBTS shares. B. Riley Financial lifted their target price on D-Wave Quantum from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded D-Wave Quantum from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a report on Friday, August 28th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $35.00 target price on D-Wave Quantum in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $40.00 target price on D-Wave Quantum in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reissued a "buy" rating and set a $43.00 price target on shares of D-Wave Quantum in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, D-Wave Quantum presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $36.27.

D-Wave Quantum Trading Up 8.9%

The stock has a market cap of $6.68 billion, a P/E ratio of -25.48 and a beta of 2.15. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $19.17 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $20.04. The company has a quick ratio of 20.42, a current ratio of 20.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

D-Wave Quantum (NASDAQ:QBTS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.08) by ($0.02). D-Wave Quantum had a negative return on equity of 26.67% and a negative net margin of 2,001.59%.The business had revenue of $3.08 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.08) earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 0.6 compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that D-Wave Quantum Inc. will post -0.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other D-Wave Quantum news, Director Rohit Ghai sold 13,518 shares of D-Wave Quantum stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.41, for a total value of $357,010.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 23,617 shares in the company, valued at $623,724.97. The trade was a 36.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Sophie Ames sold 3,070 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.95, for a total value of $52,036.50. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 589,009 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,983,702.55. This trade represents a 0.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 262,631 shares of company stock valued at $6,656,539 over the last quarter. Insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On D-Wave Quantum

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Fiduciary Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of D-Wave Quantum in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Root Financial Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of D-Wave Quantum by 388.0% during the fourth quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 976 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 776 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in D-Wave Quantum by 545.5% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,788 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 1,511 shares in the last quarter. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in D-Wave Quantum in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, PeakShares LLC acquired a new stake in D-Wave Quantum in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 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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