International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Cut to "Hold" at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Wednesday morning.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on International Business Machines from $217.00 to $208.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $200.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on International Business Machines from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on International Business Machines from $215.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $208.12.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

NYSE:IBM traded up $4.36 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $214.61. The stock had a trading volume of 4,562,210 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,228,829. International Business Machines has a twelve month low of $153.51 and a twelve month high of $237.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.06. The stock has a market cap of $198.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.24, a PEG ratio of 4.60 and a beta of 0.71. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $219.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $194.64.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $2.30 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.03. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 40.52% and a net margin of 10.22%. The company had revenue of $14.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.20 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that International Business Machines will post 10.12 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be issued a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.11%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 12th. International Business Machines's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 97.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Nickle Jaclyn Lamoreaux sold 3,600 shares of International Business Machines stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.20, for a total transaction of $774,720.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 25,390 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,463,928. The trade was a 12.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On International Business Machines

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of International Business Machines in the 2nd quarter worth about $7,160,000. Philip James Wealth Mangement LLC bought a new position in International Business Machines during the third quarter valued at about $5,117,000. Aljian Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in International Business Machines during the third quarter worth about $611,000. Focused Wealth Management Inc lifted its stake in International Business Machines by 52.2% in the third quarter. Focused Wealth Management Inc now owns 11,327 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,504,000 after purchasing an additional 3,887 shares during the last quarter. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in International Business Machines by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 140,185 shares of the technology company's stock worth $30,992,000 after acquiring an additional 6,004 shares during the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About International Business Machines

International Business Machines Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides integrated solutions and services worldwide. The company operates through Software, Consulting, Infrastructure, and Financing segments. The Software segment offers a hybrid cloud and AI platforms that allows clients to realize their digital and AI transformations across the applications, data, and environments in which they operate.