IONQ vs QCOM Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
IonQ is generally evaluated as a speculative, high-growth bet on quantum computing becoming commercially viable, while Qualcomm is assessed as a mature, cash-generative semiconductor company diversifying beyond smartphones into automotive and edge AI. The two sit at opposite ends of the risk spectrum despite both trading in the broader technology and AI narrative. The choice depends on whether an investor wants speculative optionality or established cash flow.
Qualcomm suits investors wanting durable free cash flow and dividend income from an established chip franchise, while IonQ is a high-risk, high-reward wager on quantum computing reaching commercial scale.
QCOM holds the edge across 4 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. QCOM leads on both 1-year return (+9.47%) and forward P/E quality (16.09x vs -30.87x for IONQ), a relatively favorable combination of momentum and valuation. On fundamentals, IONQ is growing revenue faster (286.80%), while QCOM maintains the higher operating margin (18.53%) — a classic growth-versus-profitability split. Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for IONQ (+80.47%) than for QCOM (+17.61%).
Human Wall Street analysts' price targets, typically implying a ~12-month view — a separate signal from this site's own AI Prediction Signal further down the page, which is a 5-/30-day machine-learning forecast based on price history alone.
- Want early exposure to quantum computing's commercialization
- Can tolerate high volatility and no near-term profitability
- Believe government and enterprise quantum contracts will keep scaling
- Are comfortable with acquisition and execution risk
- Want profitable, cash-generative semiconductor exposure
- Value dividend income and share buybacks
- Prefer diversification beyond smartphones into automotive and edge AI
- Seek a more conservative technology holding
| Metric | IONQ | QCOM |
|---|---|---|
| AI scorei | 50.3 | 51.3 |
| AI ranki | #445 | #410 |
| Latest closei | $34.35 | $178.40 |
| 1M returni | -7.29% | -5.01% |
| 3M returni | -2.14% | +4.57% |
| 6M returni | -23.12% | +32.67% |
| 1Y returni | -52.56% | +9.47% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | IONQ | QCOM |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $4.74K (-52.6%) started 2025-10-15 | $10.87K (+8.7%) started 2025-10-16 |
| 5Y ago | $34.18K (+241.8%) started 2021-10-15 | $16.02K (+60.2%) started 2021-10-18 |
| 10Y ago | $31.81K (+218.1%) started 2021-01-04 | $45.27K (+352.7%) started 2016-10-17 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | IONQ | QCOM |
|---|---|---|
| Market capi | $15.19B | $175.36B |
| Trailing P/Ei | N/A | 18.76 |
| Forward P/Ei | -30.87 | 16.09 |
| Price/Salesi | N/A | 3.88 |
| EV/Revenuei | 50.08 | 4.07 |
| Analyst targeti | $67.68 | $193.10 |
| Target upsidei | +80.47% | +17.61% |
| Metric | IONQ | QCOM |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growthi | 286.80% | -4.00% |
| Earnings growthi | N/A | -23.00% |
| EPS growthi | N/A | -23.00% |
| FCF margini | -35.61% | +23.24% |
| Operating margini | -408.17% | 18.53% |
| Profit margini | 0.00% | 21.01% |
| ROIC proxyi | -60.48% | 33.75% |
| Return on equityi | -60.48% | 33.75% |
| Dividend yieldi | N/A | 2.23% |
| Payout ratioi | 0.00% | 41.55% |
| Dividend growth streaki | N/A | No increase yet |
| Betai | 3.30 | 1.66 |
| Debt/equityi | 1.63 | 55.21 |
| Current ratioi | 10.66 | 2.02 |
| Quick ratioi | 9.92 | 1.14 |
Over the past year, IONQ and QCOM have moved weakly in the same direction (correlation of 0.36), based on daily returns.
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | IONQ | QCOM |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growthi | -52.56% | +8.73% |
| CAGRi | -52.59% | +8.74% | |
| Volatilityi | 91.99% | 53.84% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | -0.41 | 0.34 | |
| Sortino ratioi | -0.62 | 0.52 | |
| Max drawdowni | 63.28% | 41.20% | |
| Current drawdowni | 52.56% | 28.93% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 37.81% | 20.06% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 40.19% | 23.08% | |
| Max daily dropi | 14.37% | 11.46% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 29.63% | 23.52% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | +241.79% | +48.00% |
| CAGRi | +27.87% | +8.16% | |
| Volatilityi | 101.57% | 42.76% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.69 | 0.29 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 1.13 | 0.42 | |
| Max drawdowni | 90.00% | 44.50% | |
| Current drawdowni | 58.16% | 28.93% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 54.75% | 25.81% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 59.71% | 28.21% | |
| Max daily dropi | 39.00% | 11.46% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 42.22% | 23.52% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +218.06% | +247.07% |
| CAGRi | +22.18% | +13.26% | |
| Volatilityi | 96.52% | 40.01% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.63 | 0.40 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 1.02 | 0.59 | |
| Max drawdowni | 90.00% | 44.50% | |
| Current drawdowni | 58.16% | 28.93% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 50.74% | 19.59% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 56.43% | 22.88% | |
| Max daily dropi | 39.00% | 14.95% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 42.22% | 23.52% |
| Category | IONQ | QCOM |
|---|---|---|
| Company | IonQ, Inc. | Qualcomm Incorporated |
| Sector | Technology | Technology |
| Industry | Computer Hardware | Semiconductors |
| Core business | IonQ builds trapped-ion quantum computers and sells access to them through cloud platforms and direct enterprise and government contracts. | Qualcomm designs mobile chipsets and wireless technology, licensing its patents broadly while expanding into automotive, IoT, and AI-enabled edge computing chips. |
| Investor focus | Investors watch revenue growth rate, new government and defense contract wins, and progress toward larger, more error-corrected quantum systems. | Investors focus on smartphone chip demand, licensing revenue stability, and Qualcomm's progress diversifying into automotive and on-device AI chips. |
- Triple-digit revenue growth with expanding government and enterprise contracts
- Distribution through major cloud providers including AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud
- Early-mover credibility in trapped-ion quantum computing technology
- Durable licensing revenue stream from its wireless patent portfolio
- Strong free cash flow generation and consistent capital returns
- Growing diversification into automotive and edge-AI chip markets
- Still unprofitable with a valuation dependent on continued hypergrowth
- Integration risk from recent acquisitions such as SkyWater Technology
- Commercial quantum computing timelines remain technically uncertain
- Continued dependence on a mature and cyclical smartphone chip market
- Customer concentration risk, including Apple's move toward in-house modems
- Slower growth profile than pure-play AI infrastructure names
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