IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) Stock Price Up 1.5% – Here’s What Happened

IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ)’s stock price rose 1.5% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $23.78 and last traded at $23.65. Approximately 6,399,051 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 56% from the average daily volume of 14,410,908 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.30.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

IONQ has been the topic of a number of research reports. DA Davidson raised IonQ to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on IonQ from $16.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $54.00 price target on shares of IonQ in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Craig Hallum raised their target price on IonQ from $22.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Benchmark lowered their price target on IonQ from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, IonQ presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $44.80.

IonQ Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $4.74 billion, a PE ratio of -26.28 and a beta of 2.50. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $32.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $26.21.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Thomas G. Kramer sold 11,712 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director William F. Scannell purchased 93,066 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $21.81 per share, for a total transaction of $2,029,769.46. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 135,047 shares in the company, valued at $2,945,375.07. The trade was a 221.69 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 2,033,166 shares of company stock worth $38,059,593 over the last 90 days. 11.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of IONQ. Integrated Advisors Network LLC bought a new position in IonQ in the 4th quarter valued at $316,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in IonQ by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 362,603 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,146,000 after buying an additional 82,499 shares during the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of IonQ in the fourth quarter valued at about $7,081,000. Virtus Fund Advisers LLC purchased a new position in IonQ in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Virtus Investment Advisers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of IonQ in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $209,000. Institutional investors own 41.42% of the company’s stock.

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.