D-Wave Quantum (NYSE:QBTS) Stock Price Down 9% Following Insider Selling

D-Wave Quantum Inc. (NYSE:QBTS)’s share price was down 9% on Tuesday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $23.88 and last traded at $23.9090. 29,225,397 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 10% from the average session volume of 32,349,762 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.26.

Specifically, CFO John M. Markovich sold 200,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.71, for a total value of $5,142,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 1,142,820 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,381,902.20. This represents a 14.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO John M. Markovich sold 46,043 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.01, for a total transaction of $1,105,492.43. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 1,342,820 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,241,108.20. This trade represents a 3.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In related news, Director Rohit Ghai sold 13,518 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.41, for a total value of $357,010.38. Following the transaction, the director owned 23,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $623,724.97. This represents a 36.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

QBTS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Mizuho lifted their price target on D-Wave Quantum from $29.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Zacks Research upgraded D-Wave Quantum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price objective on shares of D-Wave Quantum in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $35.00 target price on D-Wave Quantum in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of D-Wave Quantum in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $36.80.

Trending Headlines about D-Wave Quantum

Here are the key news stories impacting D-Wave Quantum this week:

• Positive Sentiment: D-Wave announced what it says will be the world’s first gate-model quantum computing simulator for error-aware programming, a product aimed at improving software development and commercial adoption of its quantum platform. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The company also highlighted up to $100 million in federal backing under the CHIPS and Science Act, which could support R&D, accelerate its quantum roadmap, and strengthen investor confidence in D-Wave’s long-term growth strategy. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Market commentary and analyst coverage continue to frame D-Wave as a leading pure-play quantum name, with some notes suggesting recent product and roadmap updates could support additional upside. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts remain generally constructive overall, with several price-target increases recently reinforcing expectations for continued growth, though valuation remains elevated and execution risk is high. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Insider sales by CFO John M. Markovich and Director Rohit Ghai may weigh on sentiment, even though the transactions were disclosed as tax-related and part of a pre-arranged trading plan. Article Title

D-Wave Quantum Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 21.41 and a quick ratio of 21.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.12 billion, a P/E ratio of -21.82 and a beta of 2.05. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $22.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $22.31.

D-Wave Quantum (NYSE:QBTS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 12th. The company reported ($0.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.08) by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $2.86 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.19 million. D-Wave Quantum had a negative return on equity of 44.06% and a negative net margin of 2,957.23%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 80.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.02) earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that D-Wave Quantum Inc. will post -0.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On D-Wave Quantum

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Huntington National Bank increased its stake in D-Wave Quantum by 17.9% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 3,300 shares of the company’s stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Sigma Planning Corp boosted its stake in shares of D-Wave Quantum by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 16,329 shares of the company’s stock valued at $431,000 after purchasing an additional 560 shares during the period. AlphaStar Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of D-Wave Quantum by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. AlphaStar Capital Management LLC now owns 27,063 shares of the company’s stock worth $708,000 after purchasing an additional 592 shares during the last quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC grew its holdings in shares of D-Wave Quantum by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC now owns 9,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $251,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC increased its stake in shares of D-Wave Quantum by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC now owns 131,852 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,447,000 after buying an additional 602 shares during the period. 42.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About D-Wave Quantum

D-Wave Quantum Inc (NYSE: QBTS) develops and provides quantum computing systems, software and services focused on quantum annealing technology. Headquartered in Burnaby, British Columbia, D-Wave designs specialized processors that leverage quantum mechanics to solve complex optimization and sampling problems. Since its founding in 1999 by physicists including Geordie Rose, the company has pursued the development of commercially viable quantum hardware and accompanying software tools.

The company’s product portfolio centers on its quantum annealers, which are complemented by hybrid solvers that integrate classical and quantum computing resources.