Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. Lowers Position in International Business Machines Corporation $IBM

Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. trimmed its position in shares of International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 70,571 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 5,307 shares during the quarter. Crawford Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in International Business Machines were worth $19,912,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in IBM. Winnow Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of International Business Machines in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. purchased a new stake in International Business Machines in the third quarter worth $28,000. SWAN Capital LLC bought a new position in International Business Machines in the third quarter worth $28,000. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in International Business Machines by 129.1% in the third quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 126 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in International Business Machines during the third quarter valued at $40,000. Institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Michael Miebach purchased 434 shares of International Business Machines stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $233.33 per share, for a total transaction of $101,265.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 434 shares in the company, valued at $101,265.22. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director David N. Farr acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the director owned 9,258 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,814,432. This represents a 12.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders purchased 1,484 shares of company stock worth $417,157. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

IBM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $350.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Oppenheimer set a $380.00 price objective on shares of International Business Machines and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating on shares of International Business Machines in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $361.00 target price on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $320.87.

International Business Machines News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting International Business Machines this week:

• Positive Sentiment: IBM published a practical “quantum‑centric supercomputing” reference architecture that maps how quantum processors can be integrated with CPUs and GPUs — a clear strategic push to own early enterprise quantum and attract research/cloud customers. IBM Releases a New Blueprint for Quantum-Centric Supercomputing
• Positive Sentiment: IBM announced a partnership with Taiwan’s E.SUN Bank to deliver an enterprise AI governance framework — a commercial proof point that could help drive services and consulting revenue in regulated industries. IBM Teams Up With E.SUN Bank on AI Governance
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts continue to call IBM a top large-cap tech name alongside peers, which supports medium-term investor interest despite recent weakness. Analysts Are Bullish on Top Technology Stocks
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage highlights IBM’s “dual‑pronged” strategy (AI/hybrid cloud + quantum) to redefine enterprise computing — reinforces the company’s long-term narrative even as adoption timelines remain gradual. IBM’s Dual-Pronged Strategy to Redefine Computing Power
• Neutral Sentiment: IBM’s CFO gave interviews outlining priorities around AI, hybrid cloud and quantum — useful for strategic context but not new guidance. The Motley Fool Interviews IBM CFO Jim Kavanaugh
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry roundups and tech press reiterate IBM’s quantum roadmap and positioning; positive for brand/technology leadership but benefits are multi‑year. IBM Introduces Blueprint to Combine Quantum Computers with Traditional Supercomputers
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive/near‑term threat: Anthropic’s Claude Code announcement (automation for COBOL modernization) has sparked concerns that third‑party AI tools could displace some IBM mainframe/modernization services, and analysts/media point to that as a contributor to the year‑to‑date decline. IBM Has Fallen 16% as Anthropic Puts Them In The Bullseye
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction: IBM shares slipped around the quantum blueprint release and have been under pressure from technicals (current price below 50‑ and 200‑day moving averages) and lower trading volume, prompting short‑term selling. What’s going on with IBM stock on Thursday?

International Business Machines Stock Performance

IBM stock opened at $246.37 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $276.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $284.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. International Business Machines Corporation has a 12-month low of $214.50 and a 12-month high of $324.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $231.10 billion, a PE ratio of 22.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.73.

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

International Business Machines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 10th were given a $1.68 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 10th. This represents a $6.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. International Business Machines’s payout ratio is 60.27%.

International Business Machines Profile

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.