International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Lowered to "Hold" Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Several other research firms have also commented on IBM. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on International Business Machines from $217.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Wedbush initiated coverage on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $231.44.

Remove Ads

International Business Machines Stock Performance

Shares of IBM traded up $5.59 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $252.54. 2,880,710 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,694,791. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $245.29 and a 200-day moving average price of $229.16. International Business Machines has a 12-month low of $162.62 and a 12-month high of $266.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $234.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.40, a P/E/G ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.74.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.15. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 9.60%. Equities analysts anticipate that International Business Machines will post 10.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.65%. International Business Machines's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 104.21%.

Insider Transactions at International Business Machines

In related news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.01, for a total value of $6,715,644.43. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 45,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,387,221.07. This represents a 37.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On International Business Machines

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 40.9% in the third quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 572 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $126,000 after buying an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in International Business Machines during the 4th quarter valued at about $242,000. Brady Martz Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth about $1,940,000. Tranquilli Financial Advisor LLC purchased a new stake in International Business Machines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $373,000. Finally, Truist Financial Corp lifted its holdings in International Business Machines by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 811,062 shares of the technology company's stock worth $178,296,000 after buying an additional 49,591 shares in the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

International Business Machines Company Profile

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.