IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) Trading 8.4% Higher on Insider Buying Activity

IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ)’s share price was up 8.4% on Wednesday after an insider bought additional shares in the company. The stock traded as high as $21.20 and last traded at $20.27. Approximately 8,496,774 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 39% from the average daily volume of 13,933,165 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.70.

Specifically, 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 cost of $21.81 per share, with a total value of $2,029,769.46. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 135,047 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,945,375.07. The trade was a 221.69 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

IONQ has been the topic of a number of research reports. Craig Hallum increased their target price on shares of IonQ from $22.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $54.00 price target on shares of IonQ in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. DA Davidson upgraded shares of IonQ to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price 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, Benchmark reduced their price objective on shares of IonQ from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $44.80.

IonQ Stock Up 14.3 %

The company has a market capitalization of $5.44 billion, a PE ratio of -29.70 and a beta of 2.50. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $34.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $25.61.

Institutional Trading of IonQ

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

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.