QuantumScape (NYSE:QS) stock is in the spotlight following the submission of a Form 4 from Chief Legal Officer Michael McCarthy. The filing revealed that McCarthy sold 16,199 shares of QS stock worth about $100,000 on Nov. 29. These shares were sold at an average price of $6.18 per share.
Following the sale, McCarthy still owns 793,702 shares of the sold-state battery company. 561,086 of these shares are represented by restricted stock units (RSUs) and each RSU represents one share of common stock.
In fact, this was McCarthy’s second sale of QS stock this month. On Nov. 8, the executive sold off 43,476 shares worth about $250,000 at an average per share price of $5.76.
QS Stock: Chief Legal Officer Michael McCarthy Sells 16,199 Shares
Insider sales are harder to decipher than insider buys. As the saying goes, insiders may sell for a variety of reasons, but they buy for only one reason: They believe the price will go up.
The fact that McCarthy still owns a significant stake in QuantumScape should give shareholders a sigh of relief. Based on his remaining stake and the size of his sales relative to his stake, McCarthy seems to remain confident in the company. At the same time, McCarthy hasn’t purchased a single share of QS stock on the open market since QuantumScape became a publicly traded company in 2020. Since then, he has offloaded $40.68 million worth of shares.
Meanwhile, no QuantumScape insider has purchased shares on the open market during the past year. A scan of the past few insider transactions shows a pattern of executives exercising stock options and then selling them through a prearranged 10b5-1 trading plan.
Since QuantumScape became a public entity, insiders have purchased $100.48 million of shares while selling $252.64 million of shares. That nets out to $152.16 million of shares sold.
Another way to track sentiment is by analyzing 13F, or institutional investor, data. During the third quarter, 339 13F filers disclosed a stake in QS stock, an increase of 20 filers from the prior quarter. These filers own a total of 140.54 million shares, up by about 15% quarter-over-quarter.
On the date of publication, Eddie Pan did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
