Vanguard Group Inc. Acquires 5,420,037 Shares of IonQ, Inc. $IONQ

Key Points

• Vanguard increased its IonQ stake by 18.5% in the fourth quarter, buying 5,420,037 shares to hold 34,774,743 shares (about 10.01% of the company) valued at $1.56 billion per its SEC filing.
• Analysts have trimmed several price targets (e.g., Benchmark and Needham to $65, DA Davidson to $35), but the consensus rating is a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $68.25.
• IonQ shares were trading up (opened at $45.15) with a market cap of $16.55 billion, while insiders have sold 8,581 shares in the last three months and now own 5.20% of the stock.

Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ - Free Report) by 18.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 34,774,743 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,420,037 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 10.01% of IonQ worth $1,560,343,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in IonQ by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 5,679 shares of the company's stock worth $349,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. Lauer Wealth LLC grew its position in IonQ by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Lauer Wealth LLC now owns 5,107 shares of the company's stock worth $229,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC grew its position 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. CoreCap Advisors LLC grew its position in IonQ by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 3,527 shares of the company's stock worth $217,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in IonQ by 50.5% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 831 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 279 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 41.42% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on IONQ shares. Benchmark reduced their price objective on IonQ from $75.00 to $65.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price objective on IonQ from $80.00 to $65.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley set a $37.00 price objective on IonQ in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on IonQ from $55.00 to $35.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded IonQ from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 25th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, IonQ has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $68.25.

IonQ Trading Up 7.2%

Shares of IONQ opened at $45.15 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $16.55 billion, a PE ratio of -18.13 and a beta of 2.80. IonQ, Inc. has a 12 month low of $25.89 and a 12 month high of $84.64. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $35.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $44.45.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other IonQ news, insider Robert T. Cardillo sold 5,165 shares of IonQ stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.44, for a total transaction of $203,707.60. Following the transaction, 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider John W. Raymond sold 2,800 shares of IonQ stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.34, for a total value of $93,352.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 83,963 shares in the company, valued at $2,799,326.42. The trade was a 3.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 8,581 shares of company stock valued at $316,156. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

IonQ 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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