International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) have received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seventeen analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $208.12.

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on International Business Machines from $215.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on International Business Machines from $235.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $209.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

IBM stock opened at $227.41 on Friday. International Business Machines has a 1-year low of $156.89 and a 1-year high of $237.37. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16. The firm has a market cap of $210.27 billion, a PE ratio of 33.10, a P/E/G ratio of 5.09 and a beta of 0.71. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $220.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $197.27.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $2.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $14.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.08 billion. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 40.52% and a net margin of 10.22%. International Business Machines’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.20 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that International Business Machines will post 10.12 earnings per share for the current year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders 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 yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 12th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is 97.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Nickle Jaclyn Lamoreaux sold 3,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was 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. This trade represents 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 this link. Company insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its position 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. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new position in International Business Machines during the 2nd quarter worth $7,160,000. Philip James Wealth Mangement LLC acquired a new position in International Business Machines in the 3rd quarter valued at $5,117,000. Aljian Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the 3rd quarter valued at $611,000. Finally, Focused Wealth Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 52.2% during the 3rd quarter. Focused Wealth Management Inc now owns 11,327 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,504,000 after purchasing an additional 3,887 shares in 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.