International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Trading Up 1.6% – Should You Buy?

International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)’s stock price traded up 1.6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $226.71 and last traded at $226.30. 727,332 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 2,470,497 shares. The stock had previously closed at $222.67.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

IBM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of International Business Machines from $200.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Bernstein Bank increased their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on International Business Machines from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $214.88.

International Business Machines Price Performance

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 stock has a market cap of $206.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.18 and a beta of 0.74. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $221.37 and a 200 day simple moving average of $208.59.

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

International Business Machines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th were given a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.99%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 12th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 97.23%.

Insider Activity at International Business Machines

In related news, SVP Nickle Jaclyn Lamoreaux sold 3,600 shares of the company’s 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 directly owns 25,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,463,928. This represents a 12.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.07% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On International Business Machines

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ellenbecker Investment Group lifted its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 2.3% during the third quarter. Ellenbecker Investment Group now owns 2,049 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $453,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the period. Goldstein Advisors LLC raised its stake in International Business Machines by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC now owns 1,217 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $269,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC lifted its position in International Business Machines by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC now owns 1,346 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $298,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Sollinda Capital Management LLC grew its stake in International Business Machines by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Sollinda Capital Management LLC now owns 1,360 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $301,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lansing Street Advisors increased its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 3.4% in the third quarter. Lansing Street Advisors now owns 1,503 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $332,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

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.