IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) Stock Price Down 2.1% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• IonQ's stock decreased by 2.1% to $41.47, with trading volume down 61% compared to the average.
• Analysts have varied ratings on IonQ, with two hold ratings and six buy ratings, leading to a consensus price target of $45.00.
• Significant insider selling was reported, including the CEO selling over 2.5 million shares, indicating a potential change in shareholder confidence.

IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ - Get Free Report) was down 2.1% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $41.48 and last traded at $41.47. Approximately 9,101,194 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 61% from the average daily volume of 23,051,313 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.34.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on IONQ shares. DA Davidson decreased their target price on IonQ from $50.00 to $35.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Rosenblatt Securities started coverage on IonQ in a research report on Tuesday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $70.00 target price for the company. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of IonQ in a research report on Wednesday. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. Benchmark upped their price objective on shares of IonQ from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of IonQ in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $45.00 price objective for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $45.00.

IonQ Trading Down 4.3%

The firm has a market cap of $9.98 billion, a P/E ratio of -25.60 and a beta of 2.55. The business's fifty day moving average price is $41.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $34.28.

IonQ (NYSE:IONQ - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.14) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.28) by $0.14. IonQ had a negative net margin of 753.20% and a negative return on equity of 63.35%. The business had revenue of $7.57 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.51 million. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.19) EPS. IonQ's revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that IonQ, Inc. will post -0.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Peter Hume Chapman sold 3,581,193 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.13, for a total value of $136,550,889.09. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 390,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,883,244.77. This trade represents a 90.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CRO Rima Alameddine sold 65,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.57, for a total transaction of $2,507,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive owned 552,592 shares in the company, valued at $21,313,473.44. This represents a 10.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 9,191,850 shares of company stock valued at $360,519,930. 5.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of IonQ

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in IonQ by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,497,964 shares of the company's stock worth $474,460,000 after purchasing an additional 123,839 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in IonQ by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,466,094 shares of the company's stock worth $186,593,000 after purchasing an additional 45,942 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of IonQ by 1,310.9% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,468,160 shares of the company's stock valued at $103,095,000 after acquiring an additional 2,293,231 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of IonQ by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,934,625 shares of the company's stock valued at $80,809,000 after acquiring an additional 216,752 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its position in shares of IonQ by 101.4% during the 1st quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 927,760 shares of the company's stock valued at $20,476,000 after acquiring an additional 467,084 shares in the last quarter. 41.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.