IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) Stock Price Down 8.3% After Analyst Downgrade

IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) traded down 8.3% during trading on Thursday after Benchmark lowered their price target on the stock from $50.00 to $45.00. Benchmark currently has a buy rating on the stock. IonQ traded as low as $24.33 and last traded at $27.45. 18,595,897 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 29% from the average session volume of 26,113,281 shares. The stock had previously closed at $29.93.

IONQ has been the subject of a number of other reports. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $54.00 price objective on shares of IonQ in a research note on Thursday. Craig Hallum raised their price target on shares of IonQ from $22.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. DA Davidson raised IonQ to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on IonQ from $16.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $44.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at IonQ

In related news, CFO Thomas G. Kramer sold 9,780 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.72, for a total value of $290,661.60. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 926,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,524,108.08. This trade represents a 1.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CRO Rima Alameddine sold 21,337 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.73, for a total transaction of $634,349.01. Following the sale, the executive now owns 571,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,985,373.33. This trade represents a 3.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 44,223 shares of company stock worth $1,314,652. Insiders own 11.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of IONQ. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of IonQ in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in IonQ by 421.0% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 620 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 501 shares in the last quarter. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. bought a new stake in IonQ during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. purchased a new stake in IonQ in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of IonQ in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 41.42% of the company’s stock.

IonQ Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $39.25 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $24.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.86 billion, a PE ratio of -33.46 and a beta of 2.41.

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.