IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) Stock Price Up 5% – Here’s What Happened

IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ)’s share price was up 5% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $46.44 and last traded at $45.5440. Approximately 25,003,224 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 23% from the average daily volume of 20,261,684 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.37.

Key IonQ News

Here are the key news stories impacting IonQ this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Transformational acquisition — IonQ agreed to buy SkyWater Technology for ~$1.8B to bring semiconductor foundry capabilities in?house, which management says accelerates next?gen hardware development and vertical integration. IonQ to buy SkyWater for $1.8 billion
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support — Rosenblatt and Needham reiterated “buy” ratings and raised/maintained aggressive price targets ($100 and $80), signaling substantial upside expectations if IonQ successfully executes on SkyWater integration and scaling. Benzinga coverage TickerReport
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor analysis and strategy context — Zacks and other analyst pieces discuss IonQ’s 2026 investment thesis (scale, full?stack platform) and how it stacks versus competitors; useful for gauging medium?term expectations but not immediate catalysts. IonQ 2026 Investment Thesis
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage of sector dynamics — comparative pieces (e.g., QBTS vs IONQ) and M&A call/transcript provide detail on competitive positioning and deal rationale; they inform conviction but are not single decisive drivers. QBTS or IONQ: Which Quantum Stock Wins M&A Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Shareholder investigation — a law firm has opened an investigation into SkyWater’s board over whether the sale provides fair value, introducing potential legal or timing risk to the deal and adding headline uncertainty. Shareholder Notice: Brodsky & Smith investigation
• Negative Sentiment: Execution and financial risk — the $1.8B acquisition is large relative to IonQ’s market and will require integration, possible financing/dilution and near?term execution; these raise downside risk if integration or economics fall short. Business Wire deal announcement

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of IonQ in a research note on Tuesday. Mizuho started coverage on shares of IonQ in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $90.00 target price on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price target on IonQ from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of IonQ from $32.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on IonQ in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $47.00 price objective for the company. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, IonQ presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $75.91.

IonQ Trading Up 5.0%

The stock has a market capitalization of $15.82 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.51 and a beta of 2.63. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $48.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $51.45.

IonQ (NYSE:IONQ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported ($3.58) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.44) by ($3.14). The company had revenue of $39.87 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.99 million. IonQ had a negative return on equity of 127.06% and a negative net margin of 1,836.32%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 221.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.24) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that IonQ, Inc. will post -0.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at IonQ

In related news, CRO Rima Alameddine sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.89, for a total transaction of $4,689,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive owned 432,616 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,285,364.24. The trade was a 18.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director William J. Teuber, Jr. purchased 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $54.81 per share, for a total transaction of $109,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 6,413 shares in the company, valued at approximately $351,496.53. The trade was a 45.32% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 125,000 shares of company stock valued at $5,992,000 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 5.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On IonQ

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. raised its holdings in shares of IonQ by 28.4% in the second quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 1,008 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. Hilltop National Bank lifted its holdings in IonQ by 112.5% during the 3rd quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 425 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of IonQ by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 5,679 shares of the company’s stock worth $349,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Lauer Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of IonQ by 5.5% in the third quarter. Lauer Wealth LLC now owns 4,852 shares of the company’s stock worth $298,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of IonQ by 11.8% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,480 shares of the company’s stock worth $153,000 after acquiring an additional 261 shares in the last quarter. 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. 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.