![\"Five](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1792519219_548_.jpeg\"\/)
<\/p>\n
Image source: Getty Images.<\/p>\n
On the one hand, the practical applications for quantum computing, coupled with several newly signed contracts for these pure-play companies, have investors seeing dollar signs. However, the people who know these rapidly growing quantum computing companies best are sending all the wrong signals to Wall Street<\/a>.<\/p>\n Insiders have been heading to the exit for years<\/p>\n Wall Street analysts are paid to know the ins and outs of the companies and industries they cover. But no individuals understand a company better than its insiders.<\/p>\n An “insider<\/a>” is a high-ranking executive, board member, or beneficial owner of at least 10% of a company’s outstanding shares who may possess non-public information. For the sake of transparency and to comply with securities law, insiders are required to file Form 4 with regulators anytime they buy or sell their company’s stock.<\/p>\n $31.45+$0.67 (+2.16%)<\/p>\n NYSE \u00b7 As of 1:41 PM ET 10\/20\/26<\/p>\n According to the trailing five years of Form 4 filings, insiders at Wall Street’s most heralded quantum computing companies have been decisive sellers:<\/p>\n IonQ: $576,620,769 in net sellingRigetti: $82,993,683D-Wave: $331,331,615Quantum Computing: $33,893,854<\/p>\n In aggregate, pure-play quantum computing insiders have sold $1.02 billion more in shares than they’ve purchased since Oct. 16, 2021.<\/p>\n The potential silver lining to this net-selling activity is that not all stock sales are inherently bad news. Executives and board members are commonly compensated with stock and\/or options, often requiring these individuals to sell a portion of their holdings to cover federal and\/or state tax liability. Tax-based selling, or sales to diversify an insider’s investment portfolio, shouldn’t be a concern for investors.<\/p>\n QBTS<\/a> – D-Wave Quantum<\/p>\n $11.82-$0.02 (-0.13%)<\/p>\n NASDAQ \u00b7 As of 1:39 PM ET 10\/20\/26<\/p>\n But this is really only half of the story<\/a>. The other side of the coin, insider buying, is just as relevant.<\/p>\n Over the trailing five-year period, insider purchases have been practically nonexistent:<\/p>\n IonQ: $3,349,000 in insider buyingRigetti: $625,000D-Wave: $309,080Quantum Computing: $0<\/p>\n Collectively, insiders have purchased less than $4.3 million of their company’s stock since mid-October 2021. While there are several reasons to sell a stock, there’s only one reason for insiders to buy: the expectation of share price appreciation. Clearly, insiders aren’t buying.<\/p>\n Valuation could be a reason for this dynamic. All four pure-play quantum computing stocks are trading well above 30 times trailing 12-month sales. Historically, a price-to-sales ratio<\/a> above 30 has been a beacon for locating bubbles on Wall Street.<\/p>\n IONQ PS Ratio<\/a> data by YCharts.<\/a><\/p>\n![\"IONQ](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/768d680164dbeaa14d9cae5f23f02f56.png\"\/)
<\/a><\/p>\n