2 Unbelievable Growth Stocks to Buy Before They Soar in 2026

IonQ reported Q3 2025 revenue of $39.9 million, a 222% year-over-year increase, exited the quarter with $1.5 billion in cash and investments, and accelerated its roadmap by achieving an Algorithmic Qubit (#AQ) score of 64 on its fifth-generation Tempo system three months early; the company is expanding via acquisitions (Oxford Ionics, Capella Space) and government and industry contracts (U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, AstraZeneca). Amazon posted total 2024 revenue above $638 billion and net income of $59.2 billion (vs. $30.4 billion in 2023); AWS grew 20% year over year to $33 billion in Q3 2025 (annualized run rate $132 billion), advertising generated nearly $18 billion in Q3 (+22% YoY), and the firm is aggressively investing in AI infrastructure (doubling data-center power by 2027, developing Trainium3/Inferentia chips, Bedrock, and consumer-facing generative features).

Analysis

Market structure: Amazon (AMZN) is the clear near-term winner — AWS +20% y/y and $132B annualized run rate plus a growing $18B/Q ad business increases pricing power across cloud, ads, and retail ecosystems. IonQ (IONQ) is an early-stage pure-play with a technical milestone (#AQ 64) that extends addressable market into drug discovery, logistics and crypto-resilient networking, but commercial demand is still lumpy: $39.9M revenue Q3 2025 vs $1.5B cash cushion.

Competitive dynamics: Amazon’s vertical push (Trainium3/Inferentia, Bedrock, Rufus) compresses unit economics for third-party GPU vendors over 18–36 months, shifting margin share to platform owners. IonQ’s trapped‑ion advantage (room-temp, algorithmic qubit progress) challenges superconducting incumbents, but network effects (cloud integrations with AWS/Azure/GCP) and enterprise software stacks will determine long-run share — not raw qubits alone.

Risk profile & catalysts: Tail risks include export controls/regulatory bans on quantum tech, premature commercial claims, or a prolonged funding squeeze if cash burn outpaces revenue (watch cash runway threshold <$800M). Key catalysts: additional government/Big Pharma contracts (next 6–12 months), AWS infrastructure spending cadence (data‑center power doubling by 2027), and Trainium3 benchmark results vs Nvidia within 12–24 months.

Cross-asset implications: Expect higher demand for power, copper and data‑center capex suppliers; equity risk-on should compress credit spreads but increase tech earnings dispersion—lift implied vol in small caps (IONQ). FX: stronger USD if US cloud/AI leads; bond market sensitivity to tech capex could push real yields modestly higher over 2026–27.

Key Decisions for Investors

• Establish a core 2–3% long position in AMZN for a 12–36 month horizon; add on any pullback of 5–10% or if AWS guidance beats next quarter. Consider selling covered calls (3–6 month) if position appreciates >15% to harvest premium while retaining exposure to Bedrock/ads upside.
• Allocate a speculative 0.5–1% position in IONQ via 12–18 month LEAPS calls or long call spreads (buy 18‑month ATM LEAP, sell 40% OTM) to limit downside while capturing adoption upside; tranche buys monthly over 3–6 months to manage binary risk and stop out if quarterly revenue growth falls below 20% y/y or cash declines under $800M.
• Implement a 12–36 month pair trade: long AMZN (size X) vs short NVDA (size 0.4X) to express secular platform gains vs GPU margin pressure from Trainium3; rebalance if NVDA data‑center revenue growth outperforms by >10% y/y or Trainium3 shows material TCO advantage in benchmarks.
• Monitor regulatory and contract catalysts closely: if within 60 days there are new U.S./EU export controls on quantum or a major pharma/government contract (> $50M) is announced for IONQ, increase IONQ position by up to another 0.5% or exit on adverse regulatory action. Reduce cyclical semiconductor capex exposure if AWS capex guidance materially above street estimates increases power/commodity costs by >10% year over year.