QuantumScape (NYSE:QS) Trading Up 4% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• QuantumScape's stock price increased by 4%, reaching $8.63 after trading as high as $9.11, with a notable trading volume of about 28.6 million shares, surpassing its average volume.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on QuantumScape, with price targets ranging from $2.50 to $11.00; the consensus rating is "Hold" with a price target of $5.90.
• Recent insider trading saw significant share sales, including 465,000 shares sold by insider Mohit Singh and 500,000 shares sold by Michael O. McCarthy III, demonstrating a reduction in insider ownership.

QuantumScape Corporation (NYSE:QS - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded up 4% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $9.11 and last traded at $8.63. 28,653,652 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 18% from the average session volume of 24,251,307 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.30.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on QS shares. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of QuantumScape from $6.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. UBS Group downgraded shares of QuantumScape from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $5.00 to $2.50 in a report on Thursday, April 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of QuantumScape from $3.00 to $2.50 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded shares of QuantumScape to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $5.90.

QuantumScape Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 16.40 and a current ratio of 16.40. The firm has a market cap of $5.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.53 and a beta of 4.43. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $7.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $5.48.

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

Insider Transactions at QuantumScape

In other QuantumScape news, CTO Timothy Holme sold 11,906 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.02, for a total value of $83,580.12. Following the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 1,661,928 shares in the company, valued at $11,666,734.56. This represents a 0.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael O. Mccarthy III sold 500,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.60, for a total value of $5,800,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 1,467,183 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,019,322.80. This represents a 25.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,089,468 shares of company stock valued at $35,534,411 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 12.03% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in QS. M&T Bank Corp grew its holdings in shares of QuantumScape by 97.2% in the first quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 39,964 shares of the company's stock valued at $166,000 after acquiring an additional 19,694 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in QuantumScape by 362.7% during the first 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 during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of QuantumScape during the 4th quarter valued at $1,527,000. Private Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in QuantumScape by 17.1% in the 1st quarter. Private Advisory Group LLC now owns 447,478 shares of the company's stock worth $1,862,000 after purchasing an additional 65,237 shares during the period. Finally, ExodusPoint Capital Management LP increased its stake in QuantumScape by 64.2% in the 4th quarter. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP now owns 261,078 shares of the company's stock worth $1,355,000 after buying an additional 102,120 shares in the last quarter. 29.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.