IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) Trading Down 13.2% – Here’s Why

IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) shares traded down 13.2% on Friday . The company traded as low as $55.84 and last traded at $56.9870. Approximately 31,539,456 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 18% from the average session volume of 26,692,986 shares. The stock had previously closed at $65.66.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of IonQ from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Morgan Stanley set a $48.50 target price on shares of IonQ in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of IonQ in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price objective on IonQ from $80.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price objective on shares of IonQ in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, IonQ has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $68.63.

IonQ Stock Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $46.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.09. The company has a market cap of $21.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -203.53 and a beta of 3.18.

IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.34) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.26) by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $64.67 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $49.75 million. IonQ had a negative return on equity of 23.20% and a net margin of 174.88%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 754.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.14) EPS. As a group, analysts predict that IonQ, Inc. will post -2.26 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider John W. Raymond sold 2,800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.34, for a total transaction of $93,352.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 83,963 shares in the company, valued at $2,799,326.42. This represents a 3.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Robert T. Cardillo sold 3,773 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.90, for a total value of $188,272.70. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 139,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,984,353.30. This represents a 2.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 5.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On IonQ

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of IONQ. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in shares of IonQ by 12.5% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 134,176 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,962,000 after buying an additional 14,898 shares in the last quarter. Amundi bought a new stake in IonQ during the 1st quarter worth about $630,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in IonQ by 106.2% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 57,305 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,265,000 after acquiring an additional 29,513 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in shares of IonQ by 24.1% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 450,031 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,932,000 after acquiring an additional 87,428 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth raised its stake in shares of IonQ by 30.3% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 46,782 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,032,000 after acquiring an additional 10,881 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.42% of the company’s stock.

About IonQ

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. It also provides contracts associated with the design, development, and construction of specialized quantum computing hardware systems; maintenance and support services; and consulting services related to co-developing algorithms on quantum computing systems.