IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) Sees Strong Trading Volume – Here’s Why

IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) shares saw an uptick in trading volume on Wednesday . 10,259,263 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 1% from the previous session’s volume of 10,134,744 shares.The stock last traded at $42.09 and had previously closed at $43.84.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Craig Hallum increased their target price on shares of IonQ from $15.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Benchmark lifted their price target on IonQ from $12.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on shares of IonQ from $13.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th.

IonQ Trading Down 3.8 %

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $23.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $13.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.13 billion, a P/E ratio of -52.06 and a beta of 2.49.

IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $12.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.56 million. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.22) earnings per share. IonQ’s revenue for the quarter was up 102.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that IonQ, Inc. will post -0.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CRO Rima Alameddine sold 9,159 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.72, for a total transaction of $98,184.48. Following the transaction, the executive now directly owns 648,783 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,954,953.76. This trade represents a 1.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Peter Hume Chapman sold 13,106 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.73, for a total value of $389,641.38. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 414,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,319,011.99. The trade was a 3.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 110,223 shares of company stock worth $2,286,983 in the last three months. 11.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of IonQ by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 49,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $348,000 after acquiring an additional 1,731 shares during the period. Verity Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in IonQ by 12.4% in the third quarter. Verity Asset Management Inc. now owns 33,898 shares of the company’s stock worth $296,000 after purchasing an additional 3,736 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its stake in IonQ by 29.3% in the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 18,938 shares of the company’s stock worth $166,000 after purchasing an additional 4,288 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC lifted its position in IonQ by 4,824.2% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 6,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 6,368 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of IonQ by 40.6% during the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 26,801 shares of the company’s stock valued at $188,000 after buying an additional 7,744 shares in the last quarter. 41.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.