International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Trading Up 1.2% – Here’s Why

International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) shares shot up 1.2% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $252.20 and last traded at $249.3320. 5,653,793 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 7% from the average session volume of 6,054,363 shares. The stock had previously closed at $246.28.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on IBM shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of International Business Machines from $325.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on International Business Machines from $304.00 to $247.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, International Business Machines has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $320.87.

International Business Machines Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. The company has a market cap of $233.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.36, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.73. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $276.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $284.84.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The technology company reported $4.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.33 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $19.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.23 billion. International Business Machines had a net margin of 15.69% and a return on equity of 38.15%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.92 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that International Business Machines Corporation will post 10.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 10th were issued a $1.68 dividend. This represents a $6.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 10th. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 60.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director David N. Farr purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $304.00 per share, for a total transaction of $304,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 9,258 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,814,432. This trade represents a 12.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Michael Miebach purchased 434 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $233.33 per share, with a total value of $101,265.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $101,265.22. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders acquired 1,484 shares of company stock worth $417,157. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On International Business Machines

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of IBM. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of International Business Machines during the fourth quarter worth about $2,446,429,000. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 29.2% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 22,021,912 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $6,523,720,000 after purchasing an additional 4,976,756 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in International Business Machines by 83.4% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,617,117 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,663,847,000 after buying an additional 2,553,552 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in International Business Machines by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 95,051,475 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $28,019,274,000 after buying an additional 1,913,708 shares during the period. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in International Business Machines by 27,928.2% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,903,116 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $561,001,000 after buying an additional 1,896,326 shares in the last quarter. 58.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About International Business Machines

International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) is a global technology and consulting company headquartered in Armonk, New York. Founded in 1911 as the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company (CTR) and renamed IBM in 1924, the company has evolved from early electromechanical machines to a diversified technology provider serving enterprises and governments worldwide. IBM is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol IBM.

IBM’s principal businesses encompass cloud computing and software, infrastructure and systems, consulting and technology services, and research and development.