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

IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ)’s stock price dropped 8.3% during mid-day 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. Approximately 18,595,897 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 29% from the average daily volume of 26,113,281 shares. The stock had previously closed at $29.93.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on IONQ. Craig Hallum upped their target price on shares of IonQ from $22.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. DA Davidson upgraded IonQ to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $54.00 price objective on shares of IonQ in a research report on Thursday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of IonQ from $16.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. One 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $44.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Thomas G. Kramer sold 9,780 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.72, for a total transaction of $290,661.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 926,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,524,108.08. This represents a 1.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CRO Rima Alameddine sold 21,337 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.73, for a total value of $634,349.01. Following the sale, the executive now directly owns 571,321 shares in the company, 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. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 44,223 shares of company stock worth $1,314,652. 11.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On IonQ

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Integrated Advisors Network LLC bought a new stake in shares of IonQ in the 4th quarter worth about $316,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in IonQ by 29.5% during the 4th 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 acquiring an additional 82,499 shares during the period. Voloridge Investment Management LLC bought a new position in IonQ in the 4th quarter valued at $7,081,000. Virtus Fund Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in IonQ in the fourth quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Virtus Investment Advisers Inc. bought a new stake in shares of IonQ during the fourth quarter worth $209,000. 41.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

IonQ Stock Up 2.6 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $5.53 billion, a PE ratio of -31.50 and a beta of 2.41. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $38.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $24.63.

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.