D-Wave Quantum Gains Fresh Momentum as Nasdaq Verafin Trial and Wedbush Target Lift Attention Ahead of Results

D-Wave Quantum stock gains on Nasdaq Verafin pilot and Wedbush Outperform rating. High volatility expected as the group prepares for Q2 earnings on August 6.

D-Wave Quantum has found itself back in the spotlight just as the calendar turns toward its next earnings update. A new proof-of-concept with Nasdaq Verafin, a fresh Outperform call from Wedbush and a lively options market have put the quantum computing group firmly on traders’ radar before its second-quarter numbers on 6 August 2026.

The stock moved sharply in Germany on Monday, rising 11.17 percent to EUR 17.41. By Tuesday, it added another 2.58 percent to EUR 17.86. Over the past seven trading days, the advance has reached 15.34 percent, underscoring how quickly sentiment can swing around the name when news flow improves.

At the centre of the latest corporate update is a trial with Nasdaq Verafin aimed at financial crime detection. The two companies plan to test whether D-Wave’s annealing technology can identify complex patterns in transaction data, account relationships and networks of business partners. The project is designed to help build better forecasting models for fraud, phishing and money laundering by analysing hundreds of potential data signals from account activity and transaction patterns.

For D-Wave, the initiative broadens the commercial case for its technology beyond its existing core markets of aviation and logistics. CEO Alan Baratz said the agreement also reflects Nasdaq Verafin’s push to strengthen its position as a technologically advanced player in financial services. In his view, the deal is another application of D-Wave’s quantum-hybrid approach to machine learning and other development work.

The Nasdaq Verafin pilot comes on the heels of another commercial announcement: an expanded relationship with AT&T. That earlier collaboration involves the telecoms group using quantum technology in its AI-driven network operations, with one optimisation task reportedly cut from about an hour to under 15 seconds — a 240-fold speed-up.

Wall Street has added to the enthusiasm. Wedbush analyst Matt Bryson began coverage of D-Wave with an Outperform rating and a $40 price target, nearly twice the current share price. The call has helped frame the latest rally as more than a short-term burst, even though the company is still at an early stage in turning technical wins into revenue.

The market’s excitement is being tempered by caution. The AT&T work remains a test rather than a confirmed source of sales, and the options market is already pricing in a double-digit percentage swing for the upcoming earnings release. That points to a high level of uncertainty around the report.

On the numbers themselves, Wall Street is looking for a second-quarter loss per share on modest revenue. Expectations are noticeably higher than in earlier quarters, partly because the stock has already run hard. D-Wave’s 30-day annualised volatility is above 100 percent, placing it among the most turbulent names in the quantum computing universe. The shares are also still far below their 52-week high of EUR 38.48 from October 2025, leaving them 53 percent to 54.76 percent under that peak depending on the comparison point.

D-Wave is not the only quantum stock to have benefited from the broader risk-on mood. Rigetti Computing gained 9 percent on Monday and Quantum Computing rose 8 percent, with no obvious company-specific catalyst. The wider market helped as well, after the Nasdaq 100 advanced 1.52 percent when President Trump cancelled strikes on Iran and tensions in the Middle East eased.

All of that sets up Thursday’s report as the next real test. D-Wave will publish second-quarter results before the US market opens on 6 August 2026, with CEO Alan Baratz and CFO John Markovich then due to walk investors through the figures and outlook. For now, traders are left weighing a string of promising commercial headlines against a business that still has to prove those announcements can show up in the accounts.