QuantumScape (NYSE:QS) Now Covered by Morgan Stanley

Research analysts at Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of QuantumScape (NYSE:QS) in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm set an “equal weight” rating and a $12.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s price objective suggests a potential downside of 4.70% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on QS. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of QuantumScape from $5.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $10.00 price objective on QuantumScape and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. HSBC cut QuantumScape from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $5.30 to $10.50 in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of QuantumScape to a “moderate sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Finally, Evercore ISI restated an “in-line” rating and set a $12.00 target price (up previously from $8.00) on shares of QuantumScape in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, QuantumScape currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $9.17.

QuantumScape Stock Performance

QuantumScape stock traded up $0.04 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $12.59. 5,569,836 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 28,685,678. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.57 billion, a PE ratio of -15.59 and a beta of 2.76. The company has a quick ratio of 21.14, a current ratio of 21.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $14.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.34. QuantumScape has a one year low of $3.40 and a one year high of $19.07.

QuantumScape (NYSE:QS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The company reported ($0.18) EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.18). During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.23) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that QuantumScape will post -0.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Kevin Hettrich sold 9,800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.29, for a total value of $110,642.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 1,502,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,960,267.02. This represents a 0.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Michael O. Mccarthy III sold 40,000 shares of QuantumScape stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.79, for a total value of $471,600.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 137,888 shares in the company, valued at $1,625,699.52. This represents a 22.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 3,110,144 shares of company stock worth $46,571,515 in the last 90 days. 5.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On QuantumScape

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Perbak Capital Partners LLP purchased a new position in QuantumScape in the 1st quarter worth about $353,000. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of QuantumScape during the 1st quarter valued at $2,819,000. Thames Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of QuantumScape during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,792,000. CacheTech Inc. purchased a new position in shares of QuantumScape in the first quarter valued at $130,000. Finally, 111 Capital purchased a new position in shares of QuantumScape in the second quarter valued at $131,000. 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.