Tyler Crowe: Looking back at some of the stock market darlings of 2025, this is Motley Fool Money. Welcome to Motley Fool Money. My name's Tyler Crowe. Today, I'm joined by longtime contributors, Matt Frankel and Jon Quast. The end of the year is sneaking up on us pretty quick, and I don't know, there's some instinctual feel as investors to look back at the year as December rolls around and take stock, if you will, don't mind my pun of the stock market darlings of 2025. What did well? What worked, and what ...

Core Viewpoint - Rigetti Computing has experienced significant volatility in 2025, with a notable decline of around 60% from its October high, despite being up approximately 50% year-to-date [1][2]. Company Performance - Rigetti Computing's stock price is currently at $24.50, with a market capitalization of $8.1 billion [6]. - The stock has a 52-week range of $5.95 to $58.15, indicating substantial fluctuations in value [6]. - The company has a gross margin of -6849.48%, highlighting financial challenges [6]. Industry Context - The quantum computing industry is still in its early stages, with significant potential for growth, projected to exceed $100 billion by 2035 according to McKinsey & Company [7]. - The market is crowded with various players, including private companies and established tech giants like Alphabet and Microsoft [4]. Funding and Contracts - Rigetti relies heavily on external funding and must secure research contracts to maintain operations, as it lacks a legacy business to support its financial needs [8]. - A critical contract opportunity is with DARPA, which Rigetti did not advance in, unlike competitors such as IonQ and IBM [9][10]. Future Outlook - The potential for Rigetti's stock to rebound in 2026 is contingent on the broader market's risk appetite and the company's ability to secure significant contracts [12]. - Investors are advised to focus on the best-performing quantum computing startups, as the complexities of the industry make it challenging to identify winners without expert guidance [11].

Core Viewpoint - Quantum Computing Inc. (QUBT) has promising technology but faces challenges in achieving commercial viability, with its stock experiencing significant volatility over the past year [1][2]. Company Overview - QUBT's stock has declined over 30% in the past year, despite reaching a 52-week high of $25.84 in late September [1][3]. - The current stock price is $11.42, with a market capitalization of $2.6 billion [3]. Recent Developments - QCi announced the acquisition of Luminar Semiconductor for $110 million, marking a strategic shift towards revenue-generating hardware [4]. - The acquisition is pending bankruptcy court approval, as Luminar Technologies filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, but Luminar Semiconductor is not a debtor in that case [5][4]. Financial Performance - QCi's financials show a stark contrast between revenues and expenses, reporting revenues of $484,000 against $29 million in operating expenses for the first nine months of 2025 [10]. - The company has a significant dilution issue, with over 224 million shares outstanding and a market cap exceeding $2.7 billion, having quadrupled its shares in the past three years [9]. Market Position and Future Outlook - QCi holds valuable patents in quantum photonics, giving it a first-mover advantage in the quantum tech industry [7]. - The future of QCi's stock is closely tied to market sentiment and the success of the Luminar Semiconductor acquisition, with the quantum computing market still in its early stages and commercial viability uncertain [12][11].

Core Insights - Investors are showing a bullish sentiment towards Quantum Computing (NASDAQ: QUBT), with significant trading activity observed in options [1][2] - The overall sentiment among large investors is 75% bullish and 25% bearish, indicating strong confidence in the stock [3] Trading Activity - A total of 16 options trades were identified, with 15 calls amounting to $716,206 and 1 put totaling $116,010 [3] - The projected price targets for Quantum Computing range from $10.0 to $23.0 based on recent trading activity [4] Options Volume and Open Interest - The analysis of options volume and open interest reveals investor interest in Quantum Computing's options, particularly within the strike price range of $10.0 to $23.0 over the last 30 days [5][6] Noteworthy Options Activity - Specific options trades include a bullish put sweep with a strike price of $23.00 totaling $116,000 and multiple bullish call sweeps with varying strike prices and total trade prices [10] Company Overview - Quantum Computing Inc specializes in integrated photonics and quantum optics technology, providing affordable quantum machines designed for high-performance computing, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity [11] Market Status - Recent analyst ratings suggest an average target price of $17.33, with one analyst maintaining a buy rating at $25, while others have adjusted their ratings to neutral with targets of $15 and $12 [13][14] Current Stock Performance - The trading volume for QUBT stands at 7,794,983, with the stock price currently at $11.43, reflecting a decrease of 2.56% [16]

D-Wave is holding a major event next month.Quantum computing has the potential to be one of the next major tech advancements, which has driven increased investor interest in quantum computing stocks.D-Wave Quantum (QBTS 5.87%) has benefited from that, as it's up 219% in 2025 (as of Dec. 19). If you're considering picking up some shares, or if you're already a shareholder, there's an important date coming up next month. Why Jan. 27 is a key date for D-WaveD-Wave is holding its annual Qubits quantum computing ...

Industry Overview - Quantum computing is attracting investor interest due to its potential for significant commercial disruption and long-term technological ambition [1] - The industry is in early stages, but progress in optimization, simulation, and advanced analytics is becoming clearer [1] Company Strategies - Rigetti Computing focuses on superconducting, gate-based quantum processors and aims for fault-tolerant systems through a modular "chiplet" approach [5][10] - IonQ utilizes trapped-ion technology, emphasizing qubit quality and customer traction, with a clearer commercialization narrative [6][12] Price Performance - Rigetti's stock has increased by 118.3% over the past six months, while IonQ's stock has risen by 25.7% during the same period [3] Business Models - Rigetti's revenue model is heavily reliant on research-driven customers, including government agencies and early enterprise pilots, which may not stabilize revenue [8] - IonQ is focusing on commercialization by making its systems accessible through cloud platforms, allowing for a monetization strategy based on customer usage [9] Growth Expectations - The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Rigetti's 2025 sales indicates a year-over-year decline of 26.88%, with a projected loss per share of 68 cents [14] - In contrast, IonQ's 2025 sales are expected to grow by 151.78%, with a projected loss per share of $5.08 [17] Investment Considerations - Rigetti is seen as a longer-term investment focused on hardware scalability, while IonQ offers a more immediate path to usability and customer adoption [13][22] - Both companies currently hold a Zacks Rank of 3 (Hold) and a Value Score of F, indicating that their stocks are priced based on future potential rather than current fundamentals [20]

Core Insights - Aeva Technologies is positioning LiDAR technology as central to the transition towards "Physical AI," showcasing a passenger vehicle with 4D LiDAR integrated into the windshield at CES 2026 [1][10] - The new 4D LiDAR sensor utilizes Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave technology, allowing simultaneous measurement of distance and speed for detected objects, enhancing machine perception in dynamic environments [2][10] - Aeva is expanding its technology applications into transportation and industrial sectors, with sensors aimed at improving traffic flow, rail systems, and factory automation [3][10] Company Developments - Aeva's stock has seen significant growth, nearly tripling in value during 2025 [8] - The company currently has a forward price-to-sales ratio exceeding 31, indicating a high valuation compared to the industry average [9] - Aeva's earnings estimates have remained stable over the past 60 days, with projected losses of -1.80 for the current year and -1.81 for the next year [13]

Group 1: Market Performance - Throughout 2025, quantum computing stocks, particularly D-Wave Quantum, IonQ, and Rigetti Computing, have significantly outperformed the S&P 500, with D-Wave Quantum achieving a remarkable 256% gain, making it the top-performing quantum computing stock [1] - D-Wave Quantum's market capitalization currently stands at $10.5 billion, with a notably high price-to-sales (P/S) ratio of 363, raising questions about its valuation [6] Group 2: Technology Overview - Quantum computers utilize qubits, which can represent values as probability amplitudes, unlike classical computers that use binary bits [2] - D-Wave Quantum employs a technology called quantum annealing, which analyzes potential arrangements of qubits to find optimal configurations for specific problems, making it particularly suited for optimization tasks in logistics, manufacturing, route planning, and inventory management [4][5] Group 3: Competitive Landscape - Various companies are exploring different methods for creating and manipulating qubits, with IonQ focusing on trapped ion systems and Rigetti utilizing superconducting qubits [3] - Despite D-Wave's strong performance, historical trends suggest that a sharp correction could occur in its stock price in 2026, indicating potential volatility in the quantum computing sector [7]

Key Takeaways QUBT posted Q3 revenues of $384,000, driven by R&D and custom hardware contracts plus DIRAC-3 cloud access. QUBT is deploying DIRAC-3 to develop quantum methods to mitigate solar noise in space-based LiDAR data. QUBT secured its first U.S. commercial sale as a top 5 bank ordered its quantum security solutions. Quantum Computing, Inc. (QUBT) , or QCi, reported third-quarter results that highlight growing real-world adoption of its photonic and quantum computing systems. Revenues increased to $3 ...

Fast Company Newsletters The Palo Alto-based company plans to showcase its "award-winning annealing quantum computing technology, hybrid quantum-classical solvers, and real-world customer use cases that are demonstrating measurable performance benefits, often beyond classical computing alone.†Santa keeps delivering for quantum computing investors this year. On Monday, shares of well-known quantum computing firms shot up by double digits, with D-Wave Quantum stock up almost 15% and Quantum Computing Inc. u ...