IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) Shares Down 4.2% – Here’s What Happened

IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ)’s share price dropped 4.2% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $21.92 and last traded at $22.66. Approximately 6,305,282 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 58% from the average daily volume of 14,887,723 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.65.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on IONQ shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on IonQ from $16.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Benchmark lowered their target price on shares of IonQ from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $54.00 price target on shares of IonQ in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Craig Hallum upped their price objective on shares of IonQ from $22.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, DA Davidson upgraded shares of IonQ to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, IonQ has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.80.

IonQ Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $5.07 billion, a P/E ratio of -28.11 and a beta of 2.50. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $31.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.78.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Thomas G. Kramer sold 11,712 shares of IonQ stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.57, for a total value of $217,491.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 944,510 shares in the company, valued at $17,539,550.70. This trade represents a 1.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CRO Rima Alameddine sold 1,407 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.20, for a total value of $29,828.40. Following the sale, the executive now directly owns 592,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,563,438. This represents a 0.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,033,166 shares of company stock valued at $38,059,593. Company insiders own 11.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On IonQ

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of IONQ. PDS Planning Inc lifted its stake in shares of IonQ by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 11,829 shares of the company’s stock valued at $494,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Mariner LLC boosted its holdings in IonQ by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 54,479 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,276,000 after buying an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in shares of IonQ by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,753 shares of the company’s stock worth $116,000 after buying an additional 363 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of IonQ by 73.2% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,136 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 480 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of IonQ by 421.0% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 620 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 501 shares during the last quarter. 41.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.