IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) Shares Down 7.7% – Here’s Why

Shares of IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) fell 7.7% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $38.64 and last traded at $39.18. Approximately 19,667,888 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 21% from the average daily volume of 24,783,514 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.46.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on IONQ shares. Wedbush began coverage on shares of IonQ in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $75.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded IonQ from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Morgan Stanley set a $49.00 price objective on IonQ in a report on Thursday, August 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on IonQ from $42.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $65.00 price objective on shares of IonQ in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, IonQ has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $69.92.

IonQ Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $14.93 billion, a PE ratio of -8.41 and a beta of 3.28. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $43.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $43.39.

IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) last released 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. The company had revenue of $80.05 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $66.47 million. IonQ had a negative return on equity of 22.29% and a negative net margin of 553.27%.IonQ’s quarterly revenue was up 286.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.70) earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that IonQ, Inc. will post -2.86 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other IonQ news, Director Gabrielle B. Toledano sold 2,757 shares of IonQ stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.01, for a total value of $151,662.57. Following the sale, the director owned 11,154 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $613,581.54. The trade was a 19.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 transaction of $151,690.14. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 62,608 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,444,692.16. This represents a 4.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 9,329 shares of company stock valued at $513,216. 0.55% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of IonQ

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bogart Wealth LLC grew its holdings in IonQ by 24.4% during the 1st quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 1,273 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in IonQ by 117.4% during the third quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in IonQ by 50.5% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 831 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 279 shares in the last quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions increased its holdings in IonQ by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions now owns 12,314 shares of the company’s stock worth $355,000 after acquiring an additional 295 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in IonQ by 26.1% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,491 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 309 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other 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. 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.