Bessemer Group Inc. Increases Holdings in IonQ, Inc. $IONQ

Key Points

• Bessemer Group Inc. increased its IonQ stake by 6.5% in the fourth quarter, ending with 214,390 shares worth about $9.6 million. Several other institutional investors also boosted or initiated positions, and hedge funds and institutions now own 41.42% of the stock.
• Insider activity was mixed: director William J. Teuber Jr. bought 3,000 shares, while insider John W. Raymond sold 2,800 shares. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,354 shares total.
• IonQ remains highly volatile despite strong Q1 revenue growth of 754.7% year over year to $64.67 million, as the company still posted a wider-than-expected loss. Analysts remain generally constructive, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.63.

Bessemer Group Inc. grew its holdings in IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ - Free Report) by 6.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 214,390 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 13,084 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. owned about 0.06% of IonQ worth $9,619,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in IONQ. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position 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 acquiring an additional 14,898 shares in the last quarter. Amundi purchased a new position in shares of IonQ in the first quarter valued at about $630,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of IonQ by 106.2% in the first 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 lifted its position 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 valued at $9,932,000 after acquiring an additional 87,428 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth increased its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 10,881 shares during the last quarter. 41.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other IonQ news, insider John W. Raymond sold 2,800 shares of the business's 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 of the company's stock, valued at $2,799,326.42. The trade was a 3.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director William J. Teuber, Jr. acquired 3,000 shares of IonQ stock in a transaction on Friday, February 27th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $38.38 per share, for a total transaction of $115,140.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 9,413 shares of the company's stock, valued at $361,270.94. The trade was a 46.78% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 12,354 shares of company stock valued at $504,428 over the last ninety days. 5.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Key Stories Impacting IonQ

Here are the key news stories impacting IonQ this week:

• Negative Sentiment: Quantum-computing stocks including IonQ were hit hard Friday afternoon as the entire group fell, suggesting sector-wide risk-off sentiment is weighing on shares. Quantum Computing Stock Shock: IonQ, Rigetti, D-Wave, and Quantum Computing Inc. Fall 6% to 9%
• Negative Sentiment: Tech stocks are broadly falling today, adding extra pressure to IonQ as investors pull back from speculative growth names. Why IonQ Stock Is Plummeting Today
• Neutral Sentiment: Earlier coverage focused on IonQ’s strong Q1 results, including surging revenue, a growing backlog, and expanding enterprise adoption, which had supported bullish sentiment before today’s selloff. The Zacks Analyst Blog IonQ, D-Wave Quantum and Rigetti
• Neutral Sentiment: IonQ has also been highlighted as a leading quantum stock, but the shares remain highly sentiment-driven and volatile because the company is still not profitable. IonQ and 5 More Stocks to Play Quantum Fever

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on IONQ shares. Weiss Ratings raised IonQ from a "sell (d-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Northland Securities started coverage on IonQ in a report on Monday, April 20th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $55.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted 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. Wall Street Zen cut IonQ from a "sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $48.50 target price on IonQ in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, IonQ presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $68.63.

IonQ Price Performance

Shares of NYSE IONQ opened at $51.97 on Monday. The business's 50 day moving average is $38.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.35. 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 $19.40 billion, a P/E ratio of -185.61 and a beta of 3.05.

IonQ (NYSE:IONQ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.34) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.26) by ($0.08). IonQ had a negative return on equity of 23.20% and a net margin of 174.88%.The company had revenue of $64.67 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $49.75 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.14) earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 754.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that IonQ, Inc. will post -2.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.

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