The last several years have seen a series of tech cycles drive up the stock market. From Metaverse technology to the rise of generative AI, everyone from retail investors to hedge fund managers is looking to get in on the next huge tech development.
Going into 2025, it appears that the technology to go long on may be quantum computing. Let’s look at some of the leading companies in this space to see which stocks investors may want to consider as they build quantum computing exposure into their portfolios.
Alphabet’s Willow Makes Massive Breakthrough
One of the clear leaders in the race to make quantum computing a practical technology is Google parent company Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL).
In December, the company announced that it had developed a quantum chip called Willow that made massive advancements over previous quantum computers.
The first and most important advantage of Willow is the fact that it actually becomes more reliable as the number of qubits used increases. Ordinarily, quantum computers become more error-prone as their number of qubits scales up.
This scalability solves one of the most critical problems in quantum computing, potentially laying the groundwork for the technology’s practical future use.
Willow’s computational power is also extremely impressive. According to a paper published by Alphabet, its latest quantum computer can solve a problem that would take an ordinary supercomputer 10 septillion years to perform in just five minutes. The computer achieved this with the use of 105 qubits, a significant improvement over Alphabet’s previous leading quantum computer, Sycamore, which had 67.
Beyond its quantum credentials, Alphabet also has the advantage of already being a dominant tech company that could be a solid investment with or without quantum computing. Google is still far and away the world’s largest search engine with a market share of around 90%. It also owns YouTube and virtually owns the video ad market.
Even dividend investors may be able to find something to like in GOOGL shares, as Alphabet was one of the tech companies to begin paying dividends in 2024. The stock currently yields just 0.3%, but there’s ample room for the company to raise its dividend in the years to come thanks to strong earnings.
IBM Eclipses Google’s Qubit Ceiling
Another serious contender in quantum technology is IBM (NYSE:IBM), which was one of the earliest companies to begin seriously exploring the technology’s potential. Perhaps the company’s biggest advantage is its development of Qiskit, an AI-enhanced software stack for quantum computers.
Getting in front of the market for quantum software could give IBM an edge, much like how NVIDIA’s programming tools for AI GPUs have become part of its moat.
While Willow is an extremely impressive development on Alphabet’s part, IBM dwarfs it when it comes to the number of qubits its quantum computers use. In late 2023, the company unveiled a quantum computer with more than 1,000 qubits, and it has even discussed the possibility of someday building a quantum supercomputer with as many as 100,000.
Another possible advantage of IBM comes from its valuation, which is modest compared to other companies competing in the quantum arena. IBM has largely been overlooked by investors bidding up the prices of other quantum companies, leaving it potentially undervalued if it does emerge as a top power in quantum computing. Right now, IBM shares trade at 3.3x sales, compared to Alphabet’s 7.3x multiple.
D-Wave Quantum Landed Forbes 2,000 Customers
One of the biggest hurdles to investing in quantum computing startups is their highly speculative nature. To some extent, D-Wave Quantum (NYSE:QBTS) solves this problem by offering investors stock in a small, innovative company that is already actively generating revenue with quantum computing.
In Q3, the company’s quarterly revenue was $1.9 million. Though a very small amount, this shows that D-Wave is able to actually sell its services to customers, making its business model a bit less theoretical.
D-Wave is currently working on a 4,400-qubit processor that could represent a leap forward for the company. It is also working on the practical business side to line up commercial customers, including a recently announced collaboration with Japan Tobacco. Already, the team has secured 76 commercial customers, including 27 that are part of the Forbes 2,000.
Investors should be aware that D-Wave has already spiked quite a lot on enthusiasm for innovative quantum stocks, leaving its shares looking rather expensive. At almost 97x sales and with earnings likely still quite a way off, the stock is far from being a bargain. Those who are bullish on the long-term potential of quantum computing, however, may not mind high prices in light of the fact that the company’s total market cap is still just $1.2 billion.
IonQ Revenues Growing Rapidly
Another promising quantum startup is IonQ (NYSE:IONQ), a company that is investing heavily in trapped ion quantum computing.
Like D-Wave, IonQ is already generating sales, having achieved revenues of $12.4 million in Q3. The company also secured a $54.5 million contract with the US Air Force Research Lab, contributing to total bookings of $63.5 million.
IonQ’s unique advantage is its trapped ion technology, which is more scalable than other quantum computing hardware technologies. It is also building out a quantum cloud platform that could eventually make it a major player in quantum technology.
Just as encouraging is IonQ’s exploration of hybrid quantum-classical computing, which could offer some of the benefits of quantum computing in terms of pure computational power while offering something closer to classical computing’s reliability.
Amazon
A final honorable mention may be suitable for Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), a company that isn’t among the first most investors think of when quantum computing comes up. Through its Amazon Braket service, the company is already providing access to quantum computing hardware to customers and researchers.
Given the sheer dominance of AWS in cloud computing, it’s far from difficult to imagine the company successfully capitalizing on quantum computing and eventually becoming a go-to quantum provider.
Amazon has been leaning into the technology in a major way since 2021, when it announced the opening of its AWS Center for Quantum Computing with the goal of building a fault-tolerant quantum computer.
In 2023, Amazon unveiled its own chip that made significant strides in error correction. Last year, it even launched the Quantum Embark advisory program, which helps customers prepare for and implement quantum computing going forward.
Like Alphabet, Amazon also has the advantage of being a massively successful tech company that has strong potential outside of quantum computing. The current average price forecast for AMZN shares suggests a 12-month upside of 8.6%. With earnings set to grow as Amazon’s eCommerce business and AWS both continue to expand, the stock could be a strong candidate as a long-term hold.
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