IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) Shares Down 1% - Here's Why

IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) experienced a 1% decline in its stock price during trading on Wednesday. The shares reached a low of $25.02 and were last seen trading at $25.29, down from a previous close of $25.55. During the day, a total of 18,077,314 shares were exchanged, marking a 22% increase compared to the average trading volume of 14,767,807 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Perspectives

Market analysts have expressed varied views on IonQ’s stock. Benchmark has lowered its target price for IonQ shares from $50.00 to $45.00 while maintaining a "buy" rating. On another front, The Goldman Sachs Group increased its price target from $16.00 to $30.00 but assigned a "neutral" rating. Similarly, Needham & Company reiterated a "buy" rating and set a target price of $54.00 on IonQ shares. DA Davidson upgraded IonQ to a "strong-buy" rating, while Craig Hallum raised their target price from $22.00 to $45.00, assigning a "buy" rating. Currently, one investment analyst recommends holding the stock, while three analysts have a "buy" rating and one has given a strong buy rating. According to MarketBeat.com, IonQ holds a consensus rating of "Buy" with an average price target of $44.80.

Stock Movement and Market Metrics

The stock showed slight gains of 0.1% at one point earlier in the trading session. Over recent sessions, IonQ has recorded a 50-day simple moving average of $32.32, and its 200-day simple moving average stands at $26.81. The company has a market capitalization of approximately $5.70 billion, a PE ratio of -31.69, and a beta of 2.50.

Insider Activity at IonQ

Recent insider activity provides additional insights into the company's performance. Director William F. Scannell acquired 93,066 shares of IonQ stock during a transaction on March 12 at an average price of $21.81 each, totaling approximately $2.03 million. Following this purchase, Scannell now owns 135,047 shares valued at around $2.95 million, marking a significant 221.69% increase in his ownership stake. In contrast, insider Peter Hume Chapman sold 2,000,000 shares on March 11 for an average price of $18.72, leading to a substantial total transaction value of over $37 million. Post-sale, Chapman retains 414,363 shares worth about $7.76 million, reflecting an 82.84% reduction in his shareholding. Over the last three months, insiders have sold off a total of 2,033,166 shares amounting to $38,059,593. Currently, insiders hold approximately 11.60% of IonQ's total stock.

Institutional Investment Trends

Several institutional investors have made adjustments to their positions in IonQ recently. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its ownership by 9.2%, now holding 1,614,034 shares valued at around $14.1 million after acquiring an additional 135,851 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased their stake by 34.2%, now owning 437,596 shares valued at about $3.83 million. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd. established a new position worth $1.63 million in the same quarter. Meanwhile, State Street Corp raised its ownership by 1.8%, owning 4,260,880 shares worth roughly $37.24 million. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. also purchased new shares, investing approximately $3.84 million. Currently, institutional and hedge funds hold about 41.42% of IonQ's total shares.

About IonQ

IonQ, Inc. focuses on the development of general-purpose quantum computing systems in the United States. The company provides access to various quantum computers with differing qubit capacities through cloud platforms, including Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft's Azure Quantum, and Google's Cloud Marketplace.

IonQ, Stocks, Market