International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Stock Price Down 2.5% – Here’s Why

Shares of International Business Machines Co. (NYSE:IBM) dropped 2.5% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $233.46 and last traded at $237.31. Approximately 1,803,226 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 56% from the average daily volume of 4,116,153 shares. The stock had previously closed at $243.49.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on IBM. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com lowered International Business Machines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 15th. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on International Business Machines in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $320.00 price target on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on International Business Machines from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on International Business Machines from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $231.13.

International Business Machines Trading Down 6.6 %

The stock has a market cap of $210.78 billion, a PE ratio of 35.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a 50 day moving average of $251.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $232.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.04.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $3.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.15. International Business Machines had a return on equity of 38.99% and a net margin of 9.60%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Co. will post 10.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.94%. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 104.21%.

Insider Activity at International Business Machines

In related news, SVP Robert David Thomas sold 26,543 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.01, for a total value of $6,715,644.43. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 45,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,387,221.07. This represents a 37.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On International Business Machines

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Quent Capital LLC grew its stake in International Business Machines by 8.7% during the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 4,109 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,022,000 after acquiring an additional 330 shares in the last quarter. Agate Pass Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 72.6% during the 1st quarter. Agate Pass Investment Management LLC now owns 7,393 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,838,000 after purchasing an additional 3,110 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. grew its position in shares of International Business Machines by 44.1% in the first quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. now owns 4,425 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,100,000 after purchasing an additional 1,355 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 60.7% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,032 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $257,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marotta Asset Management lifted its position in International Business Machines by 6.6% during the first quarter. Marotta Asset Management now owns 1,660 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $413,000 after buying an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

International Business Machines Company Profile

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.