International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Trading Up 1.2% After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) shot up 1.2% during mid-day trading on Tuesday after UBS Group raised their price target on the stock from $125.00 to $130.00. UBS Group currently has a sell rating on the stock. International Business Machines traded as high as $184.23 and last traded at $184.02. 627,067 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 4,703,278 shares. The stock had previously closed at $181.90.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on IBM. Evercore upgraded International Business Machines from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $165.00 to $200.00 in a report on Friday, January 19th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on International Business Machines from $179.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on International Business Machines from $155.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Bank of America increased their price target on International Business Machines from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $174.92.

Institutional Trading of International Business Machines

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its position in International Business Machines by 164.0% during the first quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 198 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in International Business Machines by 54.6% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 218 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average is $188.38 and its 200-day moving average is $169.59. The stock has a market cap of $168.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.93.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The technology company reported $3.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.78 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $17.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.29 billion. International Business Machines had a net margin of 12.13% and a return on equity of 39.55%. International Business Machines’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.60 EPS. Analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 9th were issued a $1.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 8th. This represents a $6.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.61%. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.67%.

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.