IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) Shares Down 3.8% – Time to Sell?

Shares of IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) dropped 3.8% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $66.97 and last traded at $69.3510. Approximately 28,051,067 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 6% from the average daily volume of 26,464,102 shares. The stock had previously closed at $72.07.

Analyst Ratings Changes

IONQ has been the subject of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on IonQ from $42.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of IonQ in a report on Monday, February 9th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of IonQ in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded IonQ from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $85.00 price objective on IonQ in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.63.

IonQ Stock Up 3.2%

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $44.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $43.66. The firm has a market cap of $26.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -255.34 and a beta of 3.18.

IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.34) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.26) by ($0.08). IonQ had a negative return on equity of 23.20% and a net margin of 174.88%.The firm had revenue of $64.67 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $49.75 million. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.14) earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 754.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that IonQ, Inc. will post -2.26 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Robert T. Cardillo sold 3,773 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.90, for a total value of $188,272.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 139,967 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,984,353.30. This represents a 2.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider John W. Raymond sold 2,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.34, for a total value of $93,352.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 83,963 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,799,326.42. This trade represents a 3.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On IonQ

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Asset Dedication LLC boosted its position in shares of IonQ by 1,556.8% during the 1st quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 2,071 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 1,946 shares in the last quarter. Cim Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in IonQ in the first quarter worth about $481,000. JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd lifted its stake in IonQ by 62.8% during the first quarter. JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd now owns 10,372 shares of the company’s stock worth $299,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares during the period. Encore Global Management LP bought a new position in IonQ during the first quarter worth about $577,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in IonQ by 216.5% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 656 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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. It also provides contracts associated with the design, development, and construction of specialized quantum computing hardware systems; maintenance and support services; and consulting services related to co-developing algorithms on quantum computing systems.