QuantumScape (NYSE:QS) Trading Down 13.7% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• QuantumScape's share price fell by 13.7% during trading, with a notable increase in trading volume to 53.75 million shares.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on the stock, with target prices ranging from $5.88 to $11.00 and a consensus rating of "Reduce."
• Institutional investors have increased their stakes in QuantumScape, indicating ongoing interest, with hedge funds holding 29.87% of the company's shares.

QuantumScape Corporation (NYSE:QS - Get Free Report)'s share price fell 13.7% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $15.39 and last traded at $15.41. 53,753,355 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 90% from the average session volume of 28,327,432 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.85.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on QuantumScape from $6.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of QuantumScape to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of QuantumScape in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $5.88.

QuantumScape Stock Down 13.7%

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 firm has a market capitalization of $8.72 billion, a P/E ratio of -17.92 and a beta of 4.85. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $10.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $7.57.

QuantumScape (NYSE:QS - Get Free Report) last announced 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 in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.25) EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that QuantumScape Corporation will post -0.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CTO Timothy Holme sold 166,442 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.52, for a total transaction of $2,583,179.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 1,364,273 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,173,516.96. This represents a 10.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Kevin Hettrich sold 9,800 shares of QuantumScape stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.94, for a total transaction of $136,612.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 1,591,467 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,185,049.98. This represents a 0.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,327,870 shares of company stock valued at $26,819,135. 5.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sowell Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in QuantumScape in the 1st quarter worth about $58,000. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of QuantumScape in the first quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of QuantumScape by 362.7% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 379,018 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,577,000 after buying an additional 297,097 shares in the last quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of QuantumScape during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $131,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in QuantumScape by 39.0% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 116,266 shares of the company's stock worth $503,000 after buying an additional 32,625 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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