International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Shares Down 0.3% - Should You Sell?

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) traded down 0.3% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $215.16 and last traded at $220.30. 1,201,791 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 4,170,424 shares. The stock had previously closed at $221.03.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

IBM has been the subject of several research reports. Bank of America lifted their price target on International Business Machines from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $320.00 target price for the company. Wedbush assumed coverage on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Erste Group Bank raised shares of International Business Machines from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $217.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $232.75.

Remove Ads

International Business Machines Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $223.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.55, a P/E/G ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.67. The company's 50 day moving average price is $248.41 and its 200-day moving average price is $233.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.15. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 9.60%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were given a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.77%. International Business Machines's payout ratio is 104.21%.

Insider Activity

In other International Business Machines news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.01, for a total value of $6,715,644.43. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 45,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,387,221.07. This trade represents a 37.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On International Business Machines

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Passumpsic Savings Bank increased its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 3.8% during the third quarter. Passumpsic Savings Bank now owns 2,045 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $452,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in International Business Machines in the 3rd quarter valued at $766,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in International Business Machines by 12.2% during the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 919 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $188,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. lifted its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 4.6% in the third quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 3,140 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $694,000 after buying an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Diamant Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 11.0% during the third quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,610 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $356,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 58.96% of the company's stock.

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.