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Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Here's Why QuantumScape Stock Is a Buy Before April 23
QuantumScape (NYSE: QS) initially attracted a stampede of bulls when it went public by merging with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) on Nov. 27, 2020. The solid state battery maker's stock opened at $24.80 and surged to a record high of $131.67 less than a month later. At the time, it claimed it could commercialize its first batteries by 2024, and that its revenue would reach $14 million in 2024, $39 million in 2025, and $275 million in 2026. But like many other SPAC-backed start-ups, QuantumScape missed its lofty goals by a mile. It still hasn't commercialized any of its batteries yet, and it doesn't expect to achieve that goal until 2026. As a result, it isn't generating any revenue as it racks up steep losses. Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Continue » That's why QuantumScape's stock now trades at less than $4. But with a market cap of $2.1 billion, a lot of growth is still baked into its valuation. It's also increased its number of outstanding shares by 57% since its public debut with its stock-based compensation and secondary offerings. All of those issues have made it an easy target for the bears. Yet over the past three months, QuantumScape's insiders bought nearly 5 times as many shares as they sold. That warming insider sentiment suggests its volatile stock could finally bottom out in the near future. Let's review what happened to QuantumScape over the past year -- and why its stock might be worth buying ahead of its next earnings report on April 23. QuantumScape's solid-state lithium metal batteries generate electricity from solid electrolytes instead of the liquid electrolytes found in traditional lithium-ion batteries. That difference allows them to resist higher temperatures, last longer, and be charged more quickly. However, they're also much more expensive to produce than lithium-ion batteries. That's why they've only been mass-produced for smaller devices like wearables and pacemakers instead of electric vehicles. QuantumScape wants to buck that trend and reach the EV market with its QSE-5 batteries, which have an energy density of more than 800 Wh/L (watt hours per liter) and can be rapidly charged from 10% to 80% in less than 15 minutes. By comparison, traditional lithium-ion EV batteries have an average density of 300 to 700 Wh/L with an average fast-charging time of 20 minutes to an hour. That plan sounds ambitious, but QuantumScape is firmly backed by Volkswagen (OTC: VWAP.Y), which has co-developed those batteries with the company over the past decade. Volkswagen even launched a new group, PowerCo, to start testing QuantumScape's prototype batteries in 2022. QuantumScape finally started shipping the first samples of its QSE-5 batteries to automakers in the second half of 2024. It plans to keep shipping more test samples this year as it transitions from its current Raptor separator process to its newer Cobra separator process. It expects that upgrade to boost its cell reliability, yields, and equipment productivity -- and those improvements could pave the way toward the mass production and commercialization of its batteries in 2026 and beyond. QuantumScape's near-term plans sound promising, but the Trump administration's unpredictable tariffs could still disrupt its supply chain, spike its component prices, and throttle the growth of the entire EV market. Other major automakers, including Toyota Motor and Nio, are also making progress toward mass-producing their own solid-state batteries. Those challenges could force QuantumScape to postpone the commercialization of its batteries again and rack up even steeper losses. That's probably why 15% of its floating shares were still being shorted at the end of March. But on the bright side, that elevated short interest could set it up for a minor short squeeze if it posts a stronger-than-expected earnings report on Wednesday, April 23. For 2025, analysts don't expect QuantumScape to generate any revenue as it racks up a net loss of $464.4 million. For 2026, they expect it to generate just $3.5 million in revenue as it slightly narrows its net loss to $426.5 million. In other words, Wall Street has set the bar so low that any bright spots in its earnings report -- such as a limited impact from the Trump administration's tariffs, more licensing deals, and the increased production of its QSE-5 samples -- could drive its stock higher. QuantumScape is still an extremely speculative stock, and it would be reckless to go all-in at these levels before more green shoots appear. But if you believe it can successfully upgrade its separator process this year and commercialize its first batteries by 2026, it might be a good idea to nibble on the stock before it posts its next earnings report. Before you buy stock in QuantumScape, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and QuantumScape wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $532,771!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $593,970!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 781% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 149% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of April 21, 2025 Leo Sun has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Volkswagen Ag. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Here's Why QuantumScape Stock Is a Buy Before April 23 was originally published by The Motley Fool
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Lucid Must Overcome These 4 Challenges in 2025
Lucid Group (NASDAQ: LCID), a fledgling maker of luxury electric vehicles (EVs), has burned a lot of investors since its public debut in July 2021. It initially gained a lot of attention because it was led by Tesla's former chief engineer Peter Rawlinson. It was on track to deliver its first vehicles back in 2021 and it set some ambitious growth targets. But like many other EV makers that went public by merging with special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs), Lucid management overpromised and the company underdelivered. That's why its stock has dropped more than 95% below its post-merger high of $55.52. Before it went public, Lucid management claimed the company would deliver 20,000 vehicles in 2022, 49,000 vehicles in 2023, and 90,000 vehicles in 2024. But in reality, it only delivered 4,369 vehicles in 2022, 6,001 vehicles in 2023, and 10,241 vehicles in 2024. It broadly missed its own expectations as it grappled with supply chain challenges, production delays, and intense competition. To make matters worse, Rawlinson unexpectedly stepped down as its CEO this February. With a market cap of $7.3 billion, Lucid's stock still isn't a screaming bargain at 5 times this year's sales. Some investors might be tempted to buy it as a turnaround play, but it probably won't bounce back until it overcomes these four challenges. Rawlinson's exit and transition to a "strategic technical advisor" role was jarring, since he had led Lucid for the past 12 years. Lucid's chief operating officer Marc Winterhoff succeeded Rawlinson as its interim CEO as it searches for a permanent successor. The lack of a permanent CEO is worrisome, since Lucid just launched its newest vehicle, the Gravity SUV, and plans to ramp up its production this year. It also plans to launch a cheaper mid-size SUV (rumored to be called "Earth") in 2026. Lucid's next CEO needs to carefully balance its investments and cost-cutting measures as it expands its production capacity to roll out its new vehicles. If its board chooses an industry veteran with experience scaling up new vehicle launches, its investors might breathe a sigh of relief. But if it picks an industry outsider or an executive of another struggling SPAC-backed EV maker, more investors could abandon its beaten-down stock. In 2022, Peter Rawlinson claimed that Lucid could produce more than 500,000 vehicles annually by 2025. At the time, Rawlinson expected its support from the Saudi Arabian government -- which owns more than 60% of Lucid's shares through its Public Investment Fund (PIF) -- to drive it toward that ambitious goal. But at the end of 2024, Lucid predicted it would only produce roughly 20,000 vehicles in 2025. That would be nearly double its production rate in 2024, but it makes Rawlinson's previous estimates seem ridiculous. Therefore, Lucid's next CEO will need to reset those expectations and set a clearer -- and more realistic -- roadmap for its future growth. Analysts expect Lucid to continue burning billions of dollars annually, but the bulls believe its Saudi Arabian backers will keep it afloat. In addition to being its biggest investor, the Saudi Arabian government placed a decade-long order for 100,000 Air sedans in 2022. Lucid still had $6.14 billion in total liquidity at the end of 2024, which it insists will provide it with a "sufficient financial runway" into the second half of 2026 as it delivers more Gravity SUVs and launches its next mid-size SUV. But over the long term, Lucid should reduce its dependence on the Saudi Arabian government. If Lucid botches its Gravity and "Earth" launches and continues to hemorrhage more cash, the PIF could dump its shares and move on to other EV makers. Therefore, attracting fresh investments from other investors and scoring other big orders could allay some of those concerns. Lucid has increased its number of outstanding shares by 87% since its SPAC merger with its high stock-based compensation expenses and secondary offerings. That ongoing dilution makes it hard to consider Lucid an undervalued stock. Last year, Lucid spent $286 million (35% of its total revenue) on its stock-based compensation expenses. If it meaningfully reduces that figure, it will slow down its dilution and gradually narrow its net losses on a generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) basis. That progress could convince more investors that Lucid's business model is sustainable and that it can expand. Lucid isn't headed off a cliff yet, but it still has a lot to prove. It isn't cheap enough to be considered a value play, and its inconsistent production rates, steep losses, and ongoing dilution make it a tough stock to recommend. Investors should see if it can overcome these four challenges over the next year before buying it as a turnaround play. Before you buy stock in Lucid Group, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Lucid Group wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $672,177!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 815% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 162% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of March 24, 2025 Leo Sun has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Tesla. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Lucid Must Overcome These 4 Challenges in 2025 was originally published by The Motley Fool Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
28-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Former Nikola Motor founder Trevor Milton pardoned by President Trump
The Nikola saga took a new turn Thursday night when Trevor Mlton, founder, former executive chairman and CEO of Nikola Corp., was issued a full and unconditional pardon from President Trump. Milton founded Nikola in 2014 and later led a SPAC-backed initial public offering in June 2020. The company was once valued at $30 billion and had a multibillion dollar contract with General Motors in place. However, Nikola's and Milton's fortunes reversed following fraud allegations against Milton by short-seller Hindenburg Research in September 2020. Shortly after, Milton resigned from the company and was later convicted of securities and wire fraud in 2022. Milton was sentenced to four years in prison in December 2023 by the U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York, for making false and misleading statements to retail investors to drive demand for the appealed the conviction and was allowed to remain free on bail with no surrender date. In a post on the X platform, Milton said President Trump personally called to inform him of the pardon. Milton added, 'This pardon is not just about me—it's about every American who has been railroaded by the government, and unfortunately, that's a lot of people. It is no wonder why trust and confidence in the Justice Department has eroded to nothing… I saw firsthand the tactics they use to guarantee convictions. I am incredibly grateful to President Trump for his courage in standing up for what is right and for granting me this sacred pardon of innocence.' The pardon was part of a larger effort outlined in President Trump's second inaugural address, where the president pledged to end what he saw as the political weaponization of the Justice Department. The Southern District of New York and its high conviction rate were cited as additional reasons, with 94.3% of cases tried in the Southern District resulting in a guilty plea and only 5.7% going to trial, according to 2023 release adds, 'The striking similarities between Milton's case and those brought against President Trump highlight systemic issues within the justice system, particularly within the Southern District of New York.' While Milton appears to be fully cleared, the company he founded, Nikola Corp, filed for bankruptcy protection in February. Looking ahead, the release notes that Milton is set to launch a documentary titled 'The Trevor Milton Saga: Conviction or Conspiracy.' The post Former Nikola Motor founder Trevor Milton pardoned by President Trump appeared first on FreightWaves.
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Prediction: 2 Stocks That Will Be Worth More Than BigBear.ai 2 Years From Now
(NYSE: BBAI), a developer of artificial intelligence (AI) modules for edge networks, has seen its stock decline nearly 70% since it went public by merging with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) on Dec. 8, 2021. Like many other SPAC-backed start-ups, set some ambitious growth targets but missed them by a mile. Prior to going public, claimed it could grow its annual revenue from $182 million in 2021 to $550 million in 2024. But in reality, its revenue only rose from $146 million in 2021 to $158 million in 2024 as it struggled with macroeconomic headwinds, intense competition, and the bankruptcy of its major customer Virgin Orbit in 2023. For 2025, analysts only expect its revenue to rise 8% to $170 million as it slogs through those challenges. It's also on its third CEO since its public debut, and it recently delayed its latest 10-K filing to restate all of its financial statements for 2022 and 2023. It needs to fix some calculation errors regarding its convertible notes that will mature in 2026. With a market cap of $886 million, still doesn't look like a bargain at 5 times this year's sales. The bulls might expect its newest CEO -- Kevin McAleenan, who served as the Department of Homeland Security's acting secretary for about six months in 2019 under the first Trump administration -- to bring in some fresh government contracts, but it's still deeply unprofitable. So instead of betting on long-shot turnaround, investors should check out two smaller tech stocks that could eclipse its market cap within the next two years: BlackSky Technology (NYSE: BKSY) and Jumia Technologies (NYSE: JMIA). BlackSky develops real-time imagery and analytics software for satellites. Its AI-powered system can quickly spot vehicles, aircraft, vessels, and buildings, and it crunches that visual data to help its clients make more efficient decisions. It serves a wide range of customers across the national security, supply chain management, crisis management, critical infrastructure monitoring, and economic intelligence markets. It went public by merging with a SPAC in 2021. From 2021 to 2024, its revenue grew from $34 million to $102 million (a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 31.6%). Its adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) also turned positive in 2024. That growth was largely driven by the market's robust demand for its new Gen-3 satellite's imaging and AI services. From 2024 to 2026, analysts expect its revenue to rise at a two-year CAGR of 28% to $168 million as its adjusted EBITDA grows at a CAGR of 89%. With a market cap of $277 million, it trades at just 2 times this year's projected sales. Assuming BlackSky matches analysts' estimates, grows its revenue by another 28% in 2027 to $215 million, and trades at a more optimistic 5 times its forward sales, its market cap could swell to $1.08 billion within the next two years. If growth stalls out and its valuations crumble during those two years, it could be worth a lot less than BlackSky. Jumia is one of the largest players in Africa's fragmented e-commerce market. It's based in Berlin, but it currently operates across nine African countries: Algeria, Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, and Uganda. Jumia's website attracted more than 800 million visits in 2024, and it hosts roughly 70,000 sellers, over 117 million products, and 5.4 million active consumers. It's still tiny compared to Amazon, but its early-mover advantage could make it a great long-term play on Africa's rising internet penetration and online shopping rates. Jumia went public via a traditional IPO in 2019. From 2020 to 2024, its revenue only grew at a CAGR of 4% from $140 million to $161 million. Its adjusted EBITDA also remained negative as it racked up more net losses. Unlike many other e-commerce companies, Jumia didn't experience a growth spurt during the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, the health crisis throttled its growth by disrupting its supply chain and logistics networks while curbing consumer spending. The African market also recovered from the pandemic at a slower rate than other higher-growth markets. From 2024 to 2027, analysts expect its revenue to grow at a three-year CAGR of 7% to $197 million as its adjusted EBITDA stays in the red. But with a market cap of $274 million, Jumia trades at just 1.5 times this year's sales. But if the African market stabilizes, Jumia merely matches analysts' estimates, and it trades at 5 times forward sales by the beginning of 2027, its market cap could grow to $985 million. If its growth accelerates, its valuations could soar even higher as the bulls rush back. Therefore, this little e-commerce underdog also has a shot at overtaking over the next two years. Ever feel like you missed the boat in buying the most successful stocks? Then you'll want to hear this. On rare occasions, our expert team of analysts issues a 'Double Down' stock recommendation for companies that they think are about to pop. If you're worried you've already missed your chance to invest, now is the best time to buy before it's too late. And the numbers speak for themselves: Nvidia: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2009, you'd have $305,226!* Apple: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2008, you'd have $41,382!* Netflix: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2004, you'd have $517,876!* Right now, we're issuing 'Double Down' alerts for three incredible companies, and there may not be another chance like this anytime soon.*Stock Advisor returns as of March 24, 2025 John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Leo Sun has positions in Amazon. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Prediction: 2 Stocks That Will Be Worth More Than 2 Years From Now was originally published by The Motley Fool Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
24-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Should You Forget Rigetti Computing and Buy This Millionaire-Maker Stock Instead?
Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ: RGTI) took investors on a wild ride since its public debut three years ago. The quantum computing company went public by merging with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), and its stock opened at $9.75. But by May 3, 2023, its stock sunk to an all-time low of $0.38. Like many other SPAC-backed start-ups, Rigetti overpromised and underdelivered. It only generated $13 million in revenue in 2022, compared to its original forecast of $18 million, and its founder Chad Rigetti unexpectedly stepped down as its president, CEO, and director that December. But as of this writing, Rigetti's stock has bounced back to about $9. A $50,000 investment in its record low would be worth $1 million today. The bulls rushed back as it rolled out new chips and systems, attracted more customers as a "one-stop shop" for quantum chips, systems, and cloud services, and set a clearer roadmap for its future. Over the past few months, Rigetti launched its Novera QPU, a 9-qubit commercial version of its quantum computer which costs about $900,000, and deployed its first 84-qubit Ankaa-3 quantum computing system. It also revealed its plans to launch a modular 36-qubit system this year, a non-modular 100 qubit system in 2026, and a 336-qubit system within the next few years. Meanwhile, the market's renewed interest in quantum computing stocks drove away the bears and lifted Rigetti's stock again. If everything goes right, analysts expect Rigetti's revenue to rise 30% in 2025, 140% in 2026, and 48% to $50 million in 2027. But with an enterprise value of $2.83 billion, it's already valued at a whopping 57 times its projected sales for 2027. That nosebleed valuation could limit its upside potential and set it up for a steep drop in a market downturn. So instead of chasing Rigetti at these bubbly levels, investors should consider another millionaire-maker tech stock that is still trading at more reasonable valuations: the AI chip leader Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA). If you had invested $50,000 in Nvidia 10 years ago, your investment would be worth more than $10 million today. The chipmaker generated those millionaire-making gains for its investors by expanding its market-leading gaming GPU business and rolling out AI-oriented data center GPUs long before other chipmakers paid attention to the nascent market. Unlike CPUs, which process individual pieces of data through scalar processing, GPUs crunch a wide range of integers and floating-point numbers simultaneously through vector processing. That's why Nvidia's high-end data center GPUs can handle complex machine learning and AI tasks more effectively than stand-alone CPUs. Nvidia now holds a near-monopoly in the data center GPU market, and all of the world's top AI companies -- including Microsoft, Amazon, Meta Platforms, and OpenAI -- are loading up on its chips. That's why its revenue more than doubled in both fiscal 2024 and fiscal 2025 (which ended this January). From fiscal 2025 to fiscal 2028, analysts expect its revenue and EPS to both increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 31%. Those are stunning growth rates for a stock that trades at 27 times next year's earnings -- even though it's already the world's second-most valuable company with a market cap of $2.9 trillion. Nvidia's stock pulled back 10% over the past three months amid concerns about tighter export curbs against China, higher tariffs, and other macro headwinds, but it should remain the top seller of picks and shovels for the AI gold rush. As for potential competition from quantum computing systems, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang predicts it could take 15 to 30 more years for "very useful quantum computers" -- which would require a million more qubits than today's systems -- to hit the market. Therefore, Nvidia could still have plenty of room to run as the AI market expands and evolves. Its massive size might prevent it from churning out more millionaire-making gains from modest investments over the next decade, but it certainly looks like a more reliable investment than Rigetti -- which has far too much growth baked into its sky-high valuations. Ever feel like you missed the boat in buying the most successful stocks? Then you'll want to hear this. On rare occasions, our expert team of analysts issues a 'Double Down' stock recommendation for companies that they think are about to pop. If you're worried you've already missed your chance to invest, now is the best time to buy before it's too late. And the numbers speak for themselves: Nvidia: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2009, you'd have $305,226!* Apple: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2008, you'd have $41,382!* Netflix: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2004, you'd have $517,876!* Right now, we're issuing 'Double Down' alerts for three incredible companies, and there may not be another chance like this anytime soon.*Stock Advisor returns as of March 18, 2025 John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Leo Sun has positions in Amazon and Meta Platforms. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Should You Forget Rigetti Computing and Buy This Millionaire-Maker Stock Instead? was originally published by The Motley Fool Sign in to access your portfolio
