International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Trading 0.8% Higher

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)’s stock price was up 0.8% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $169.58 and last traded at $169.58. Approximately 645,344 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 4,796,040 shares. The stock had previously closed at $168.26.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Evercore upgraded International Business Machines from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $165.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Friday, January 19th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $186.00 to $179.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Bank of America upped their target price on International Business Machines from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $200.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on International Business Machines from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Business Machines has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $181.29.

International Business Machines Stock Up 0.4 %

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $182.45 and a 200-day moving average price of $172.84. The firm has a market cap of $155.22 billion, a PE ratio of 19.14, a PEG ratio of 4.12 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.13.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The technology company reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.09. International Business Machines had a net margin of 13.18% and a return on equity of 40.21%. The business had revenue of $14.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.36 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that International Business Machines Co. will post 9.92 EPS for the current year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This is a positive change from International Business Machines’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.66. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.95%. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is 75.65%.

Institutional Trading of International Business Machines

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 20.3% in the 4th quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 477,193 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $78,045,000 after buying an additional 80,474 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. boosted its stake in International Business Machines by 18.1% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 372,307 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $52,235,000 after acquiring an additional 57,170 shares during the period. Herold Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 3.2% during the third quarter. Herold Advisors Inc. now owns 21,880 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,070,000 after purchasing an additional 688 shares during the last quarter. Tsfg LLC lifted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 40.5% in the 4th quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 378 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Auxano Advisors LLC increased its position in International Business Machines by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Auxano Advisors LLC now owns 3,398 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $556,000 after buying an additional 156 shares during the period. 58.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.