Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC Decreases Stock Position in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC reduced its holdings in shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM - Free Report) by 46.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 54,131 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 47,525 shares during the quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC's holdings in International Business Machines were worth $11,900,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Avondale Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of International Business Machines by 56.0% during the fourth quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 156 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of International Business Machines by 134.3% during the fourth quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 157 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. 58.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. UBS Group reaffirmed a "sell" rating and issued a $170.00 price objective (up previously from $160.00) on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, International Business Machines currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $242.41.

International Business Machines Price Performance

International Business Machines stock traded up $3.74 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $236.15. 3,646,341 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,217,326. The company's fifty day moving average is $245.34 and its 200-day moving average is $233.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market cap of $218.97 billion, a PE ratio of 36.84, a PEG ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.67. International Business Machines Co. has a 52 week low of $162.62 and a 52 week high of $266.45.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The technology company reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $14.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.41 billion. International Business Machines had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 38.99%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.68 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 EPS for the current year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $1.67 dividend. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. International Business Machines's payout ratio is 114.97%.

Insider Transactions at International Business Machines

In other news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of International Business Machines stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 45,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,387,221.07. The trade was a 37.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.18% 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.