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Globe and Mail
an hour ago
- Globe and Mail
Better Quantum Computing Stock: IonQ vs. Rigetti Computing
Key Points IonQ and Rigetti Computing have developed fundamentally different methods to create quantum computers. IonQ aspires to build the internet of the future while Rigetti focuses on commercializing its superconducting qubit technology. Neither IonQ nor Rigetti are profitable, although they have amassed large sums of cash to fund their operations. 10 stocks we like better than IonQ › The quantum computing industry is a promising area to invest in. Quantum machines can complete complex calculations in minutes that would take classical computers centuries, thanks to the power of quantum mechanics. In the sector, IonQ (NYSE: IONQ) and Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ: RGTI) are among the prominent players. IonQ uses ions to power its quantum machines while Rigetti employs the traditional superconducting qubits process. Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Continue » Both have seen impressive share price increases over the past year. IonQ stock is up over 400% through July 23 while Rigetti climbed more than 1,000% in that time. Is one a better investment in the nascent quantum computing field? Examining these businesses in more detail can help to arrive at an answer. Rigetti Computing's tried-and-true tech Rigetti uses a proven method of producing qubits. Qubits are a quantum device's equivalent to a classical computer's bit. But while bits represent a zero or one, the properties of quantum mechanics mean qubits can be both at the same time, enabling orders of magnitude faster processing speeds. Superconducting qubits offer several advantages. They can be manufactured using existing semiconductor chip processes, and can complete calculations faster than ion-based quantum machines. Rigetti hopes to gain greater commercialization with the latest version of its quantum computer, the Ankaa-3 system, which launched at the end of 2024. However, the technology isn't cheap. Superconducting qubits require special cryogenic equipment to keep temperatures colder than outer space. This is necessary for qubits to maintain stability long enough to perform calculations before they break down. As a result, the company exited the first quarter with an operating loss of $21.6 million on sales of $1.5 million. The loss is 30% greater than the previous year while Q1 revenue plunged 52% year over year. This combination of falling revenue and rising costs is unsustainable over the long run. That's why Rigetti executed a $350 million equity offering that helped it build up a stockpile of $575 million in cash, cash equivalents, and investments with no debt as of June 11. This cash hoard should sustain the company's operations in the short term, but it will need to produce revenue growth to build a sustainable business. IonQ's lofty ambition to remake the internet IonQ's ion-based method holds several advantages over superconducting qubits. Its tech can operate at room temperature, eschewing the need for cryogenic equipment. The technology also offers low error correction rates. Because qubits quickly break down, quantum computers are prone to calculation mistakes that limit their ability to scale. IonQ's reduced error rates make scalability a possibility. Consequently, the company aims to construct a quantum computing network, reminiscent of the infrastructure that underpins today's world wide web. It pursued several acquisitions to achieve its goal of building "the next generation of the internet," in the words of IonQ Chairman Peter Chapman. But like Rigetti, IonQ's costs are rising. It posted a Q1 operating loss of $75.7 million, an increase from 2024's $52.9 million, on revenue of $7.6 million. So it, too, is pursuing an equity offering to the tune of $1 billion. In addition, IonQ believes it can hit revenue of $75 million to $95 million in 2025. This would be a strong increase over 2024, when sales soared 95% year over year to $43.1 million. Making the choice between IonQ and Rigetti Computing stock Although Rigetti's superconducting qubits technology is well established in the quantum computing industry, IonQ's approach is producing higher sales. On top of that, another factor to consider is share price valuation. This can be assessed using the price-to-sales (P/S) ratio, a metric commonly used when companies are not profitable. Data by YCharts. The chart reveals Rigetti's P/S multiple has skyrocketed from where it was a year ago, and is far higher than IonQ's as well. This suggests Rigetti stock is overpriced, making IonQ the better value. That said, IonQ stock is not cheap, given it has a P/S ratio exceeding 200. While quantum computers hold the promise of revolutionizing the computing industry, whether IonQ or Rigetti's approach will win out in the end is far from certain. After all, quantum computing is still in its infancy. Its market size was just $4 billion in 2024, although industry estimates predict rapid growth to $72 billion by 2035. As of now, IonQ's 2024 sales success coupled with an outlook of 2025 revenue growth, and a far better valuation compared to Rigetti, make its stock the superior quantum computing investment between these two businesses. Ideally, wait for a dip in IonQ's share price, and for its Q2 results to validate it's on a trajectory to hit 2025 sales targets before deciding to pick up shares. Should you invest $1,000 in IonQ right now? Before you buy stock in IonQ, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and IonQ wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $636,628!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,063,471!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,041% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 183% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 21, 2025
Globe and Mail
2 hours ago
- Globe and Mail
Prediction: This Unstoppable Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stock Will Join Nvidia, Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, and Alphabet in the $2 Trillion Club by Year's End
Key Points The $2 trillion club is full of businesses benefitting from the growing demand for artificial intelligence. The company I'm eyeing is developing its own AI capabilities that serve multiple cases across its business with huge revenue opportunities. The stock trades for a fair value, and even slight outperformance could push it into $2 trillion territory. 10 stocks we like better than Meta Platforms › Nvidia recently became the first ever $4 trillion company in the world. Its rapid ascension in value stems from growing demand for artificial intelligence. But Nvidia isn't the only company that's seen its market value soar to multitrillion-dollar levels on the back of AI-fueled growth. The three biggest cloud computing providers -- Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet -- all boast market caps above $2 trillion. Meanwhile, Apple remains one of the most valuable companies in the world as it works to catch up on its AI capabilities. Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Learn More » But the $2 trillion club may be about to get a little bigger. One company is showing strong financial results stemming from the rapid advancements of artificial intelligence over the last few years. In fact, I predict it will surpass the $2 trillion market cap milestone before the end of the year. Here's the AI giant that could join the $2 trillion club. One of the biggest beneficiaries of generative AI capabilities I predict that the next member of the $2 trillion club will be Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META). Not only does it already have a market cap of roughly $1.8 trillion as of this writing on July 24 -- which puts it about 11% from $2 trillion -- but the stock currently looks undervalued relative to the potential opportunities. AI could boost its revenue in the near term while opening up even bigger opportunities in the long run. During Meta's first-quarter earnings call on April 30, CEO Mark Zuckerberg laid out five major opportunities for the company with AI. Improved advertising: Meta has long used machine learning algorithms to help surface advertisements amid organic content to drive maximum engagement. That's led to steady improvements in ad pricing for the company. It's also rolled out generative AI tools that help marketers come up with creatives (ads). In the pipeline, Meta's developing an AI agent that can take a marketer's objective and budget and create and run the entire campaign for them. That has the potential to save marketers money and increase the total number of companies running ads on Meta's properties, further pushing ad prices higher. More engaging experiences: Zuckerberg details two benefits of AI: better recommendations and new types of content. Meta has expanded its AI model to include more data points across all different types of content to improve recommendations across every surface of its apps, including Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. As it grows the model bigger and bigger, it's getting better and better at engaging users. That's only possible because it now has the compute power to support its large language model development. Zuckerberg also expects generative AI tools to provide new ways for creators to produce better content for users. Everything from existing content like photos and videos can be manipulated with AI, and generative AI could enable creators to produce more interactive content as well. Business messaging: Meta's WhatsApp for Business is a relatively small source of income right now. But as Meta improves its AI agent capabilities, it reduces the cost for businesses to provide customer service and sales through WhatsApp and Messenger. That could lead to a surge in WhatsApp for Business users. One analyst thinks AI agents alone are a $100 billion opportunity for Meta. A stand-alone AI chatbot: Meta has integrated the Meta AI assistant into all of its main apps and released a stand-alone version of the app as well. As the user base grows, it could provide another source of valuable advertising inventory. Importantly, since Meta is developing its own large language model for the above applications already, the additional cost of building and running a stand-alone AI chatbot is far lower than for dedicated AI companies like OpenAI or Anthropic. Devices: Zuckerberg points out the growing popularity of Meta's AI glasses. Unit sales tripled in the first quarter. Longer term, generative AI may be essential for creating an augmented reality user interface that fits into the unique setting of each user. Indeed, AI has the potential to dramatically impact Meta's financials in a positive direction in the near term while supporting its long-term objectives in virtual and augmented reality. The stock looks like a bargain right now The above factors should be able to generate strong double-digit revenue growth for Meta for years to come. The company saw 16% revenue growth last quarter, while exhibiting nice operating leverage. As a result, operating income climbed 27% year over year. The big step up in capital expenditures could weigh on earnings growth for the next couple of years as depreciation expense climbs as a result. But as the company grows into those expenses, it should continue to show operating leverage. Meta's also using excess cash flow to repurchase shares. It bought back $13.4 billion worth of its stock in the first quarter, and it still has $70 billion in cash on the balance sheet. As a result, the company should be able to generate strong earnings-per-share growth. As of this writing, the stock trades for 28 times earnings. Considering the growth potential ahead for the stock, that's an enticing price for investors. To push the stock to $2 trillion, it would have to trade for closer to 31 times earnings, which isn't an unreasonable multiple for the stock. But if Meta ends up outperforming expectations, it could trade for the same multiple and still achieve a $2 trillion valuation. I expect a combination of multiple expansion and outperformance to drive the stock to $2 trillion before the end of the year. Should you invest $1,000 in Meta Platforms right now? Before you buy stock in Meta Platforms, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Meta Platforms wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $636,628!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,063,471!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,041% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 183% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 21, 2025
Globe and Mail
12 hours ago
- Globe and Mail
After Soaring 40% in July, Is It Too Late to Buy This Supercharged Quantum Computing Stock?
Key Points Rigetti Computing announced a breakthrough with its multichip system. 2030 is a key turning point for quantum computing. 10 stocks we like better than Rigetti Computing › Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ: RGTI) has had a phenomenal July, with the stock up around 40% at the time of writing, although it was up around 50% just a few days ago. Most investors would be pleased with that return over a multiyear time frame, let alone one year. However, considering the reason behind Rigetti Computing's rapid rise, this could be the beginning of an even larger movement. Last week, Rigetti announced a breakthrough with its Ankaa-3 system, which caused shares to soar on the announcement. This spike wasn't for nothing. Rigetti announced a real breakthrough that could vault it into the leadership position in the quantum computing race. Rigetti's breakthrough shows it's on the right track Rigetti Computing announced that its Ankaa-3 system, which is composed of four 9-qubit chips, achieved a 99.5% two-qubit gate fidelity. This means that when a two-gate calculation is run, the computer delivers the correct answer 99.5% of the time. While this sounds impressive, it's still several orders of magnitude away from the accuracy of traditional computing, which is the fundamental problem companies in the quantum computing race are facing. Instead of bits that use a 0 or 1 to transmit information, quantum computers utilize qubits, which are better described as the probability of an answer being a 0 or a 1. While the information collapses to a 0 or a 1 at the end of a computation, this can lead to some errors, which is why increasing accuracy is a key problem that these quantum computing companies must solve. According to Rigetti Computing, its system is the largest multichip quantum computer available, vaulting it into a leadership position in this regard. However, there are several competitors with better two-qubit gate fidelity scores, so Rigetti Computing still has some work to do in this area. Regardless, Rigetti Computing has made a significant breakthrough, demonstrating progress toward the practical relevance of quantum computing. However, how long will investors have to wait before it becomes a reality? Rigetti's stock is a high-risk, high-reward investment Prior to 2030, Rigetti Computing estimates that the annual demand will range from $1 billion to $2 billion, mostly driven by research institutions. After 2030, this market is expected to experience significant growth, with annual demand projected to reach $15 billion to $30 billion. The 2030 date isn't unique to Rigetti Computing; nearly every other quantum computing competitor has circled this date as a turning point within the quantum computing industry. That's a long time from now, but is the market opportunity worth buying and holding a stock like Rigetti's? Currently, Rigetti Computing has a market capitalization of approximately $5 billion. If it can capture a fraction of the market opportunity by 2030, say $2 billion, then its stock easily has room to double, if not triple, from today's prices. A double or triple in the investing world over a five-year time frame is a phenomenal return, making this an attractive investment opportunity. However, there is another factor investors must be aware of. Rigetti Computing's technology may fail in the future or be surpassed by another company offering similar technology. Because there is no backup plan for Rigetti Computing, this could cause the stock to fall to zero. Investors must be aware of the risk-reward profile with Rigetti's stock, as it could become worthless as easily as it doubles or triples. As a result, quantum computing investors should ensure that a single company doesn't make up more than a 1% position within a portfolio. That way, if it goes to $0, it won't have as significant an impact on your returns. But if it doubles or triples, it can still have a sizable impact. Time will tell if Rigetti Computing's strategy is a winning one, but its latest breakthrough shows investors that it's on the right track. Should you invest $1,000 in Rigetti Computing right now? Before you buy stock in Rigetti Computing, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Rigetti Computing wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $636,628!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,063,471!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,041% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 183% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 21, 2025
