IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) Shares Down 2.3% – Here’s What Happened

IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ)’s stock price traded down 2.3% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $31.66 and last traded at $31.9490. 15,536,549 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 27% from the average session volume of 21,293,805 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.70.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on IONQ shares. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on IonQ in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $100.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of IonQ from $47.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of IonQ in a report on Monday, February 9th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of IonQ in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Wedbush initiated coverage on shares of IonQ in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $60.00 price target for the company. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, IonQ has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $69.45.

IonQ Stock Down 2.3%

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $37.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $49.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -12.83 and a beta of 2.61.

Insider Transactions at IonQ

In related news, insider Robert T. Cardillo sold 5,165 shares of IonQ stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.44, for a total transaction of $203,707.60. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 112,291 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,428,757.04. The trade was a 4.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director William J. Teuber, Jr. acquired 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The shares were bought at an average price of $38.38 per share, with a total value of $115,140.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 9,413 shares in the company, valued at $361,270.94. This represents a 46.78% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 8,581 shares of company stock valued at $316,156. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of IonQ

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of IONQ. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of IonQ by 18.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 34,774,743 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,560,343,000 after acquiring an additional 5,420,037 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in IonQ during the 4th quarter worth $199,753,000. Marex Group plc grew its position in IonQ by 419.1% during the 4th quarter. Marex Group plc now owns 4,083,453 shares of the company’s stock worth $183,225,000 after acquiring an additional 3,296,866 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in IonQ by 42.3% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 8,962,789 shares of the company’s stock worth $402,160,000 after purchasing an additional 2,663,230 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in IonQ by 648.5% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,674,348 shares of the company’s stock worth $114,917,000 after purchasing an additional 2,317,058 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.