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Globe and Mail
5 days ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
IonQ vs IBM: Which Quantum Computing Stock Is the Better Buy Today?
Quantum computing is one of the most transformative emerging technologies, with the potential to revolutionize industries from healthcare to finance. Two companies at the forefront of this field are IonQ, Inc. IONQ and International Business Machines IBM. IonQ is a pure-play quantum computing upstart, while IBM is a diversified tech giant with a significant quantum computing division. IonQ specializes exclusively in quantum computing and networking, aiming to commercialize quantum technology for real-world use. IBM, on the other hand, is a century-old enterprise IT leader that has expanded into cloud, AI, and quantum, leveraging its vast resources to pursue long-term innovation. Let's dive deep and closely compare the fundamentals of the two stocks to determine which one is a better investment now. The Case for IonQ Stock IonQ is one of the few publicly traded pure-play quantum computing companies, and it has rapidly positioned itself as a leader in this nascent industry. IonQ develops advanced trapped-ion quantum computers known for high qubit fidelity and all-to-all connectivity. Its flagship system, IonQ Forte, features 36 algorithmic qubits and has outperformed classical computing in specific tasks. For example, a recent collaboration with Ansys demonstrated Forte's ability to simulate a medical device 12% faster than a classical supercomputer, signaling a potential quantum advantage in practical applications. These achievements highlight IonQ's innovation and its focus on addressing complex real-world challenges. IonQ's growth is being propelled by a dual focus on commercial expansion and deepening its technological edge. The company continues to secure high-value government contracts, including over $75 million in aggregate deals with the U.S. Air Force, while also gaining recognition from DARPA, affirming its leadership in quantum computing. Internationally, IonQ has expanded into Japan through partnerships with Toyota Tsusho and AIST, and it continues to work with global companies like Hyundai and Airbus. Strategic acquisitions in quantum networking, including stakes in ID Quantique and Qubitekk, have positioned IonQ as a frontrunner in secure quantum communications, now backed by nearly 400 patents. The company further advanced commercialization with its first-quarter 2025 launch of a quantum computing and networking hub in partnership with EPB, generating $22 million in revenues and embedding its Forte Enterprise system into real-world energy grid applications. From the financial performance perspective, IonQ's first-quarter 2025 revenues of $7.6 million reflect steady early-stage growth in a still-nascent industry. The company expects 2025 revenues of $75–$95 million, signaling strong momentum as new contracts and acquisitions begin contributing. While IonQ remains unprofitable, with a first-quarter net loss of $32.3 million, losses have narrowed and are well-supported by a solid financial foundation. As of March 31, 2025, the company held $697.1 million in cash and investments, ample capital to fund R&D and expansion for several years without immediate financial pressure. The Case for IBM Stock IBM is a diversified technology leader with a storied history, and it has been investing in quantum computing research for over two decades. Unlike IonQ, IBM's quantum initiatives are just one part of a broad portfolio spanning enterprise hardware, software, cloud services, and consulting. IBM remains a global leader in quantum computing, with one of the largest operational quantum fleets and a clear roadmap toward scaling. The 2023 launch of 'Condor,' the first 1,121-qubit superconducting processor, marked a major milestone, and the company aims to reach 100,000 qubits by 2033. Although quantum is not yet a major revenue driver, IBM's vast R&D resources and long-term vision—supported by its cloud platform and academic partnerships—allow it to pursue breakthroughs methodically, integrating quantum capabilities into its broader enterprise and research ecosystem. IBM's investment case is anchored in its strong core businesses—hybrid cloud, software, and consulting—which continue to generate the cash flow fueling its quantum and AI ambitions. In first-quarter 2025, IBM reported $14.5 billion in revenues, up 0.6% year over year, with high-margin software growing 7% thanks to robust demand for Red Hat, automation, AI, and security solutions. Gross margin rose 170 basis points (bps) to 55.2%, and despite a slight dip in consulting revenue, IBM maintained its outlook for mid-single-digit growth in that segment. The company also posted $2 billion in free cash flow, its best first quarter in years, and reaffirmed its full-year target of $13.5 billion, supporting both reinvestment and a healthy 4–5% dividend yield. Strategically, IBM has been streamlining and investing aggressively to position itself for long-term growth. After spinning off Kyndryl, IBM has focused on acquiring high-value assets such as HashiCorp to strengthen its cloud automation capabilities, alongside earlier buys like Turbonomic and Apptio. It is also expanding in AI and cybersecurity consulting. The 2023 launch of Watsonx marked a key step in delivering enterprise-grade generative AI, complementing IBM's hybrid cloud and quantum computing efforts. These initiatives enhance IBM's positioning at the intersection of AI, cloud, and quantum innovation. Share Price Performance of IONQ and IBM IonQ stock surged 484.9% over the past year amid growing interest in the quantum computing sector. Even after some volatility in 2025, IonQ shares are still up 79.9% over the past three months. Meanwhile, IBM stock has surged 68.8% over the past year and 19.6% over the past three months. The market is recognizing IBM's steady progress. Valuation of IONQ & IBM Stocks Having a market capitalization of around $10.8 billion, IonQ stock has been volatile, reflecting the high expectations built into its valuation. IonQ's forward 12-month price/sales (P/S) ratio of 99.04 is far above the Zacks Computer - Integrated Systems industry average of 3.92. IONQ Valuation IBM trades at a forward 12-month P/S ratio of 4.00, above the industry. IBM Valuation IONQ & IBM Estimate Revision Trend For IONQ, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 loss per share has narrowed over the past 60 days, as you can see below, depicting analysts' optimism. The estimated figure indicates a much narrower loss than the year-ago reported loss of $1.56 per share. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 revenues implies year-over-year growth of 97.3%. For IONQ Stock For IBM, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 earnings per share has increased over the past 60 days, as you can see below, depicting analysts' optimism. The estimated figure indicates 6% growth from the year-ago profit level. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 revenues implies year-over-year growth of 5.5%. For IBM Stock Which Stock Is a Better Buy Now? Both IonQ and IBM are compelling in their ways, but they cater to different investor profiles. IonQ is a high-risk, high-reward play on pure quantum computing innovation. The company is growing rapidly, aiming to nearly double revenue this year, and has amassed strategic partnerships, government contracts, and technological milestones that position it at the forefront of the quantum race. With a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), reflecting positive analyst sentiment, IonQ appears to have the stronger near-term upside potential. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. IBM, by contrast, offers a balanced investment grounded in present-day fundamentals with a foot in the future. IBM is a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) stock – essentially a market-performer expectation — and that makes sense given its moderate growth outlook. It provides reliable income (via dividends) and has proven execution in cloud and software, which should deliver steady returns. While IBM is an excellent company with a foothold in quantum, its stock is more of a steady compounder. Therefore, if you're an investor bullish on quantum computing's future and willing to embrace some risk, IonQ stock appears to hold better upside potential than IBM at this time. Zacks' Research Chief Picks Stock Most Likely to "At Least Double" Our experts have revealed their Top 5 recommendations with money-doubling potential – and Director of Research Sheraz Mian believes one is superior to the others. Of course, all our picks aren't winners but this one could far surpass earlier recommendations like Hims & Hers Health, which shot up +209%. See Our Top Stock to Double (Plus 4 Runners Up) >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report IonQ, Inc. (IONQ): Free Stock Analysis Report
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
IonQ and Einride Partner on Quantum Supply Chain for Autonomous Vehicles
On May 20, 2025, IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) revealed that it has partnered with Sweden's Einride, a leading freight mobility company, to develop quantum solutions for autonomous vehicles. The collaboration targets solutions for fleet routing, logistics optimization, and supply chain management, which will boost IonQ's (NYSE:IONQ) European presence and commercial applications beyond traditional computing. Photo by Anton Maksimov juvnsky on Unsplash Einride's growing autonomous fleet faces complex routing challenges, which quantum technology aims to solve, cutting costs and improving logistics. Einride CEO Robert Falck views quantum computing as key to smarter, cleaner freight mobility. The partnership builds on IonQ's work with Airbus and AstraZeneca, expanding its presence in Sweden and Europe. IonQ Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) is a quantum computing company that develops general-purpose quantum processors. The processors target complex problems beyond classical computing capabilities. It provides cloud-based access to its quantum computers through platforms like AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud. While we acknowledge the potential of IonQ Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than IONQ and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock. READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires. Disclosure: None. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Why IonQ Inc. (IONQ) Soared Last Week?
We recently published a list of . In this article, we are going to take a look at where IonQ Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) stands against other firms that defied the market slump and recorded double-digit gains last week. The stock market may have taken a beating for most of the week, but it was able to recover losses on Friday, as investors gobbled up shares while weighing the impact of the US-China trade war. Among all major indices, the tech-heavy Nasdaq registered the highest gain, up 7.29 percent, followed by the S&P 500 with 5.7 percent, and the Dow Jones by 4.95 percent. Ten companies, predominantly in the gold and biopharmaceutical sectors, were the week's top performers as investors sought haven from their stocks amid market uncertainties. In this article, we have identified last week's 10 highest gainers and detailed the reasons behind their gains. To come up with the list, we considered only the stocks with a $2 billion market capitalization and $5 million trading volume. The week-on-week prices were based on the companies' closing prices on Friday as against on April 4, or a week earlier. A quantum computer on a countertop in an engineering laboratory with a technician at work. IonQ Inc. saw its share prices jump by 26.16 percent week-on-week at $26.09 versus $20.68 on April 4 after being one of the 15 companies tapped by the Department of Defense to explore the possibility of building a useful quantum computer that can achieve utility-scale operation. According to the DND, IONQ and its 14 quantum computing peers will work with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to scale their technology toward creating a utility-scale quantum computer. The companies will provide 'comprehensive technical details of their concepts to show that they hold water and could plausibly lead to a transformative, fault-tolerant quantum computer in under 10 years.' Companies that will successfully complete the first stage will advance in the next year-long phase, during which DARPA will analyze their research and development approach. A final stage will follow, where the QBI independent verification and validation (IV&V) team will test the firms' computer hardware. Overall, IONQ ranks 9th on our list of firms that defied the market slump and recorded double-digit gains last week. While we acknowledge the potential of IONQ as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. There is an AI stock that went up since the beginning of 2025, while popular AI stocks lost around 25%. If you are looking for an AI stock that is as promising as IONQ but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock. READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Why IonQ Inc. (IONQ) Went Up On Monday?
We recently published a list of . In this article, we are going to take a look at where IonQ Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) stands against other AI stocks that dominate Monday's top performers. The stock market finished mixed on Monday as investors remained cautious over the escalating trade tensions globally, with President Donald Trump threatening to slap China with another 50-percent tariff if the latter does not withdraw a countermeasure. The Dow Jones declined by 0.91 percent, while the S&P 500 dropped by 0.23 percent. In contrast, the tech-heavy Nasdaq inched up by 0.10 percent. Meanwhile, 10 companies, predominantly in the Artificial Intelligence sector, bucked an overall market pessimism, posting strong gains during the day. In this article, we have identified Monday's top performers and detailed the reasons behind their gains. To come up with the list, we considered only the stocks with $2 billion market capitalization and $5 million in trading volume. A quantum computer on a countertop in an engineering laboratory with a technician at work. IonQ Inc. bounced back from two straight days of losses, finishing Monday's trading higher by 10.01 percent at $22.75 apiece as investors appeared to be placing bets back onto stocks riding the artificial intelligence boom. IONQ traded higher in line with its quantum computing peers such as Super Micro Computer Inc. (NASDAQ:SMCI) and Rigetti Computing Inc. (NASDAQ:RGTI). Last week, IONQ launched its newest flagship quantum computer, Forte Enterprise, which is now officially available to customers globally through Amazon Braket, a managed quantum computing service from Amazon Web Services (AWS), as well as the IonQ Quantum Cloud. Forte Enterprise joins Aria and Forte in its series of products 'capable of meeting Amazon's high bar for commercial availability.' In a statement, IONQ President and CEO Niccolo de Masi said that the goal was to get its quantum technologies into the hands of developers to support the development of new commercial applications. 'This collaboration with AWS makes Forte Enterprise accessible for new and existing customers to leverage our quantum computing systems for real-world impact,' he added. Overall, IONQ ranks 8th on our list of AI stocks that dominate Monday's top performers. While we acknowledge the potential of IONQ as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. There is an AI stock that went up since the beginning of 2025, while popular AI stocks lost around 25%. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than IONQ but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock. READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey. Sign in to access your portfolio
