Man Group plc Takes $1.43 Million Position in IonQ, Inc. $IONQ

Man Group plc purchased a new stake in IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm purchased 26,798 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,427,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in IONQ. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in IonQ by 117.4% during the 3rd quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 500 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. EFG International AG acquired a new stake in IonQ in the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Accent Capital Management LLC increased its position in IonQ by 171.8% in the 4th quarter. Accent Capital Management LLC now owns 587 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Kelleher Financial Advisors bought a new position in shares of IonQ in the third quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Banque Transatlantique SA bought a new position in shares of IonQ in the third quarter worth about $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.42% of the company’s stock.

IonQ Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:IONQ opened at $37.65 on Thursday. IonQ, Inc. has a 1-year low of $25.89 and a 1-year high of $84.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.35 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.08 and a beta of 3.30. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $41.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $43.52.

IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported ($0.33) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.56) by $0.23. IonQ had a negative net margin of 553.27% and a negative return on equity of 22.29%. The company had revenue of $80.05 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $66.47 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.70) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 286.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that IonQ, Inc. will post -2.86 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at IonQ

In related news, Director Kathryn K. Chou sold 2,757 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.02, for a total value of $151,690.14. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 62,608 shares in the company, valued at $3,444,692.16. This represents a 4.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider John W. Raymond sold 3,815 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.01, for a total transaction of $209,863.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 80,148 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,408,941.48. The trade was a 4.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 9,329 shares of company stock worth $513,216 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of IonQ from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Wedbush began coverage on shares of IonQ in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $75.00 price objective for the company. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of IonQ in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $70.00 price objective on shares of IonQ in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered IonQ from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.92.

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.