Benchmark Issues Pessimistic Forecast for IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) Stock Price

IonQ (NYSE:IONQ - Get Free Report) had its price objective lowered by research analysts at Benchmark from $45.00 to $40.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "buy" rating on the stock. Benchmark's target price would indicate a potential upside of 39.71% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and set a $54.00 price objective on shares of IonQ in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of IonQ from $16.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, DA Davidson cut their price objective on shares of IonQ from $50.00 to $35.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, IonQ currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $40.80.

IonQ Stock Up 0.8 %

IONQ traded up $0.24 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $28.63. The company's stock had a trading volume of 16,689,343 shares, compared to its average volume of 23,519,301. The company has a market cap of $6.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -35.61 and a beta of 2.50. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $29.13. IonQ has a 1 year low of $6.22 and a 1 year high of $54.74.

Insider Transactions at IonQ

In other IonQ news, insider Peter Hume Chapman sold 2,000,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.72, for a total transaction of $37,440,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 414,363 shares in the company, valued at $7,756,875.36. This represents a 82.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director William F. Scannell purchased 93,066 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $21.81 per share, with a total value of $2,029,769.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 135,047 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,945,375.07. This trade represents a 221.69 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,033,166 shares of company stock worth $38,059,593. 11.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On IonQ

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new position in IonQ in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. ORG Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of IonQ by 348.0% in the first quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 1,120 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 870 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of IonQ by 421.0% in 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. purchased a new stake in IonQ during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. acquired a new stake in IonQ during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Hedge funds and other 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.