Quantum computing stocks soared again yesterday. The reason why may surprise even their biggest boosters

Shares in America’s “Quantum Four” quantum computing companies surged again yesterday. D-Wave, IonQ, Quantum Computing, and Rigetti all saw their stock prices jump by double-digit percentages. 

But why? The Quantum Four’s big stock price gains had nothing to do with radical new quantum computing breakthroughs. Instead, investors can thank banking giant JPMorganChase for the gains. Here’s what you need to know.

Why did quantum computing shares surge yesterday?

Yesterday, America’s four most prominent quantum computing companies saw their stock prices surge by double-digit percentages. But the genesis behind these soaring share prices wasn’t directly related to news about the companies.

Instead, the upward movement in the Quantum Four’s share prices was largely due to financial giant JPMorganChase.

On Monday, the investment bank announced a “Security and Resiliency Initiative” to invest in industries critical to America’s national economic security interests.

This initiative will see JPMorganChase invest $1.5 trillion in select industries over the next 10 years.

And the first wave of this funding—to the tune of up to $10 billion—has already been decided upon. The banking giant announced it will invest the 11-figure sum via “direct equity and venture capital investments” in companies operating across four key areas, which include:

• Supply Chain and Advanced Manufacturing
• Defense and Aerospace
• Energy Independence and Resilience
• Frontier and Strategic Technologies

For quantum computing investors, it’s that last area—frontier and strategic technologies—that matters. Included in that grouping are companies in the AI, cybersecurity, and quantum computing space.

“It has become painfully clear that the United States has allowed itself to become too reliant on unreliable sources of critical minerals, products, and manufacturing—all of which are essential for our national security,” JPMorganChase CEO Jamie Dimon said in a press release announcing the initiative. 

He added, “This new initiative includes efforts like ensuring reliable access to life-saving medicines and critical minerals, defending our nation, building energy systems to meet AI-driven demand, and advancing technologies like semiconductors and data centers. Our support of clients in these industries remains unwavering.”

However, it is worth noting that Dimon did not specify which quantum computing companies would receive investments from the bank.

In an accompanying chart, the bank merely said that strengthening capabilities in quantum computing and other areas, including AI and cybersecurity, “could directly translate into higher GDP and create military, intelligence, biotech, and cyber resilience benefits.”

Yet despite not name-dropping any of the Quantum Four, their stocks surged.

Quantum stocks soared by double digits

In the United States, there are four prominent publicly traded quantum computing companies: D-Wave, IonQ, Quantum Computing, and Rigetti. All four companies saw their stock soar yesterday after JPMorganChase’s announcement.

• D-Wave Quantum (NYSE: QBTS): up 23% to $40.62
• IonQ (NYSE: IONQ): up 16% to $82.09
• Quantum Computing (Nasdaq: QUBT): up 12% to $21.46
• Rigetti Computing (Nasdaq: RGTI): up 25% to $54.91

In addition to America’s Quantum Four, shares in the United Kingdom’s Arqit Quantum (Nasdaq: ARQQ) also jumped 20% to close at $58.27.

Despite Monday’s price surges, all Quantum Four stocks and the U.K.’s Arqit are currently down in premarket trading on Tuesday morning, as of the time of this writing.

The drops aren’t large: QBTS is down less than 3%, IONQ and QUBT are down around 4%, RGTI is down just over 3%, and ARQQ is down just under 3%. 

These modest declines suggest that some investors are engaging in profit-taking after yesterday’s share price surge.

Still, many quantum investors are likely buoyed by the notion that one of America’s biggest investment firms thinks quantum computing will be critical to national security in the years ahead. If that conjecture is correct, companies operating in those spaces have a lot to gain.

Shares in the Quantum Four have had a great year

While the real-world benefits of quantum computing, which uses the properties of quantum mechanics to solve computational problems that classical computers couldn’t hope to, are likely still years away, the companies operating in the nascent space have seen tremendous returns over the past year.

When it comes to the Quantum Four, all have had incredible returns both year-to-date (YTD) and over the past twelve months (12/m), as of yesterday’s stock market close:

• D-Wave Quantum (NYSE: QBTS): up 383% YTD, up 4,087% (12/m)
• IonQ (NYSE: IONQ): up 96% YTD, up 670% (12/m)
• Quantum Computing (Nasdaq: QUBT): up 29% YTD, up 3,001% (12/m)
• Rigetti Computing (Nasdaq: RGTI): up 259% YTD, up 6,629% (12/m)

These are gains that many investors are hoping will continue well into the future.

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