IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• IonQ has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating from 17 analysts, with 10 buys, 6 holds, and 1 sell. The average 1-year price target is about $68.63.
• The company’s latest quarterly results showed revenue of $64.67 million, well above expectations and up 754.7% from a year earlier, but EPS of -$0.34 missed estimates. Analysts still expect IonQ to remain unprofitable this year.
• IonQ shares have been volatile, with recent pressure coming from a sector-wide selloff in quantum-computing and tech stocks. Insider trading has been mixed, while hedge funds and other institutional investors continue to add to positions.

Shares of IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the seventeen research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have issued a hold recommendation and ten have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $68.6250.

Several brokerages recently issued reports on IONQ. Benchmark dropped their target price on shares of IonQ from $75.00 to $65.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating on shares of IonQ in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Rosenblatt Securities restated a "buy" rating and set a $100.00 price objective on shares of IonQ in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of IonQ from $42.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $48.50 price target on shares of IonQ in a report on Thursday, May 7th.

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

Insider Transactions at IonQ

In other IonQ news, Director William J. Teuber, Jr. bought 3,000 shares of IonQ stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $38.38 per share, for a total transaction of $115,140.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 9,413 shares in the company, valued at approximately $361,270.94. This represents a 46.78% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Robert T. Cardillo sold 3,773 shares of IonQ stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.90, for a total transaction of $188,272.70. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 139,967 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,984,353.30. This represents a 2.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 12,354 shares of company stock worth $504,428 in the last three months. Insiders own 5.20% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On IonQ

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in IonQ by 12.5% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 134,176 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,962,000 after buying an additional 14,898 shares during the period. Amundi purchased a new stake in shares of IonQ in the 1st quarter worth approximately $630,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of IonQ by 106.2% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 57,305 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,265,000 after buying an additional 29,513 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in shares of IonQ by 24.1% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 450,031 shares of the company's stock worth $9,932,000 after acquiring an additional 87,428 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth raised its stake in shares of IonQ by 30.3% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 46,782 shares of the company's stock worth $1,032,000 after acquiring an additional 10,881 shares in the last quarter. 41.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

IonQ Stock Up 0.0%

NYSE:IONQ opened at $51.97 on Monday. The company's 50 day moving average price is $38.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.35. IonQ has a 52 week low of $25.89 and a 52 week high of $84.64. The stock has a market cap of $19.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -185.61 and a beta of 3.05.

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

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.

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