QuantumScape Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:QS)

QuantumScape Corporation (NYSE:QS) saw unusually large options trading on Thursday. Traders bought 96,287 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 129% compared to the average daily volume of 42,129 call options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on QS shares. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of QuantumScape in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on QuantumScape from $12.00 to $8.50 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, HSBC raised QuantumScape from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $10.50 to $8.30 in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $11.13.

QuantumScape Trading Up 13.8%

Shares of QS stock traded up $0.96 on Thursday, hitting $7.86. The company had a trading volume of 51,821,911 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,016,180. The firm has a market cap of $4.83 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.72 and a beta of 2.60. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $7.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $8.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 21.14 and a current ratio of 21.14. QuantumScape has a twelve month low of $4.16 and a twelve month high of $19.07.

QuantumScape (NYSE:QS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The company reported ($0.16) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.18) by $0.02. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.21) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that QuantumScape will post -0.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other QuantumScape news, CTO Timothy Holme sold 150,320 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.30, for a total value of $1,397,976.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 1,712,506 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,926,305.80. This represents a 8.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Jeffrey B. Straubel sold 27,106 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.17, for a total value of $167,244.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 158,404 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $977,352.68. The trade was a 14.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 778,932 shares of company stock valued at $6,043,845 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 3.93% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On QuantumScape

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of QuantumScape during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,962,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of QuantumScape by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 36,635,232 shares of the company’s stock valued at $451,346,000 after purchasing an additional 422,378 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of QuantumScape during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,321,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of QuantumScape during the 4th quarter valued at about $4,475,000. Finally, State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D bought a new stake in shares of QuantumScape during the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,330,000. Institutional investors own 29.87% of the company’s stock.

About QuantumScape

QuantumScape Corporation is a development-stage company specializing in the research and commercialization of next-generation solid-state lithium-metal batteries for electric vehicles. The company’s core technology replaces the traditional liquid electrolyte with a solid ceramic separator, aiming to deliver higher energy density, faster charging times and enhanced safety compared to conventional lithium-ion cells. QuantumScape’s product roadmap focuses on enabling electric vehicle manufacturers to extend driving range and reduce charging downtime, addressing key barriers to widespread EV adoption.

Founded in 2010 and headquartered in San Jose, California, QuantumScape has attracted significant strategic investment and formed partnerships with leading automotive OEMs.