abrdn plc Sells 77,433 Shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM)

abrdn plc decreased its holdings in International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) by 5.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,399,293 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 77,433 shares during the quarter. International Business Machines accounts for 0.6% of abrdn plc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. abrdn plc’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $306,739,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 20,324.5% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,715,636 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $600,373,000 after purchasing an additional 2,702,340 shares during the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $573,306,000. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 55,671,883 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $12,307,940,000 after purchasing an additional 1,200,803 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 90.4% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,687,253 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $370,909,000 after purchasing an additional 800,930 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of International Business Machines by 587.1% during the 3rd quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 628,213 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $134,262,000 after purchasing an additional 536,785 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

International Business Machines Stock Up 2.0 %

IBM opened at $260.84 on Tuesday. International Business Machines Co. has a one year low of $162.62 and a one year high of $262.06. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $226.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $214.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $241.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.15. International Business Machines had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 38.99%. Equities research analysts expect that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a $1.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $6.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.56%. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 104.21%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other International Business Machines news, SVP Nickle Jaclyn Lamoreaux sold 3,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.20, for a total transaction of $774,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 25,390 shares in the company, valued at $5,463,928. This represents a 12.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.07% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $205.00 to $246.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $225.53.

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.