IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) Stock Price Up 12.5% – Here’s Why

IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) rose 12.5% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $43.61 and last traded at $43.74. Approximately 17,433,522 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 63% from the average daily volume of 46,777,207 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.89.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. DA Davidson initiated coverage on shares of IonQ in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. Needham & Company LLC increased their target price on shares of IonQ from $13.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Craig Hallum boosted their price target on IonQ from $22.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Benchmark increased their price objective on IonQ from $12.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on IonQ from $16.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $33.00.

IonQ Stock Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average is $36.11 and its 200 day moving average is $19.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -54.58 and a beta of 2.43.

IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported ($0.24) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.22) by ($0.02). IonQ had a negative net margin of 457.85% and a negative return on equity of 36.82%. The firm had revenue of $12.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.56 million. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.22) EPS. The company’s revenue was up 102.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that IonQ, Inc. will post -0.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Thomas G. Kramer sold 9,780 shares of IonQ stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.72, for a total value of $290,661.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 926,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,524,108.08. The trade was a 1.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CRO Rima Alameddine sold 22,875 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.75, for a total transaction of $406,031.25. Following the completion of the sale, the executive now owns 592,658 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,519,679.50. The trade was a 3.72 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 79,098 shares of company stock worth $1,909,323. Company insiders own 11.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in IonQ by 9.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,614,034 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,107,000 after purchasing an additional 135,851 shares in the last quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel acquired a new position in shares of IonQ in the 3rd quarter valued at $5,036,000. Yong Rong HK Asset Management Ltd bought a new stake in shares of IonQ in the 3rd quarter valued at $3,749,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in IonQ by 34.2% during the 3rd quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 437,596 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,825,000 after buying an additional 111,435 shares during the period. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in IonQ during the third quarter worth about $1,631,000. Institutional investors own 41.42% of the company’s stock.

IonQ Company Profile

IonQ, Inc engages in the development of general-purpose quantum computing systems in the United States. It sells access to quantum computers of various qubit capacities. The company makes access to its quantum computers through cloud platforms, such as Amazon Web Services (AWS) Amazon Braket, Microsoft’s Azure Quantum, and Google’s Cloud Marketplace, as well as through its cloud service.