QuantumScape (NYSE:QS) Stock Price Up 11.3% - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• QuantumScape stock rose by 11.3% during mid-day trading, reaching a high of $16.49 before closing at $15.91, with trading volume significantly higher than usual at 76 million shares.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed reviews for QuantumScape, with a recent price target increase from $6.00 to $11.00 by Robert W. Baird, while others maintain a "sell" rating, resulting in an average target of $5.88.
• Insider trading activity is notable, with two directors selling large amounts of stock, which could indicate a lack of confidence in the company's near-term prospects.

Shares of QuantumScape Corporation (NYSE:QS - Get Free Report) rose 11.3% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $16.49 and last traded at $15.91. Approximately 76,126,555 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 186% from the average daily volume of 26,646,596 shares. The stock had previously closed at $14.30.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

QS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of QuantumScape from $6.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. TD Cowen raised shares of QuantumScape to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of QuantumScape in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $5.88.

QuantumScape Stock Up 11.3%

The company has a current ratio of 16.40, a quick ratio of 16.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.01 billion, a P/E ratio of -18.50 and a beta of 4.85. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $9.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $6.94.

QuantumScape (NYSE:QS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The company reported ($0.20) earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.20). The business had revenue of $36.67 million during the quarter. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.25) EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that QuantumScape Corporation will post -0.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Fritz Prinz sold 929,813 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.62, for a total value of $10,804,427.06. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 161,343 shares in the company, valued at $1,874,805.66. The trade was a 85.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Jeffrey B. Straubel sold 157,180 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.20, for a total value of $1,446,056.00. Following the sale, the director owned 348,146 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,202,943.20. The trade was a 31.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 2,848,276 shares of company stock valued at $31,025,735 in the last three months. 5.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in QuantumScape by 456.5% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 4,759,334 shares of the company's stock worth $19,799,000 after buying an additional 3,904,168 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in QuantumScape by 9.0% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 35,351,974 shares of the company's stock worth $147,064,000 after purchasing an additional 2,911,362 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in shares of QuantumScape by 2,036.7% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,452,835 shares of the company's stock worth $16,483,000 after acquiring an additional 2,338,038 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of QuantumScape by 1,005.2% in the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,982,578 shares of the company's stock worth $13,323,000 after acquiring an additional 1,803,196 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in shares of QuantumScape by 148.0% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,803,989 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,843,000 after purchasing an additional 1,673,472 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 29.87% of the company's stock.

QuantumScape Company Profile

QuantumScape Corporation, a research and development stage company, focuses on the development and commercialization of solid-state lithium-metal batteries for electric vehicles and other applications. The company was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in San Jose, California.

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