Norges Bank’s investment in IonQ (IONQ) may be the start of active asset managers interest in quantum computing, Wedbush Securities said.
“In addition to meaningfully increasing its initial position in IONQ, we would note Norges also made new investments in RGTI and D-Wave in CQ4, suggesting it sees more than one quantum winner and also likely more than one successful modality in the long-term, a view we would agree with,” analyst Antoine Legault wrote in a note to clients.
Norges Bank is the largest sovereign wealth fund in the world and manages around $2T for Norway. According to its recently filed 13-F, Norges Bank had $200M worth of stock in IonQ, $39M worth of Rigetti, and $4M worth of D-Wave Quantum as of the fourth quarter.
And while the positions are still small compared to the company’s respective market caps and Norges’ total assets under management, Legault said he views it as a “sophisticated” asset manager “making a bet on the long-term potential of the technology.” It could also become the start of other active asset managers going into the space, which has so far been dominated by retail investors and passive asset managers or ETF providers.
“Net, despite the recent volatility seen in quantum computing stocks, we remain constructive on the long-term prospects of the technology and its addressable market, and reiterate our OUTPERFORM ratings on IONQ, RGTI, and QBTS,” Legault added.