International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) Shares Up 3.9% – Should You Buy?

International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) was up 3.9% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $219.95 and last traded at $219.3930. 22,341,953 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 179% from the average daily volume of 8,009,213 shares. The stock had previously closed at $211.20.

International Business Machines News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: IBM launched new Power server products aimed at automation, app modernization, and local AI inferencing, which could support its enterprise AI push over time.
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan kept an overweight rating on IBM even after cutting its price target to $250, indicating Wall Street still sees upside from current levels.
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts say the stock’s sharp decline may have pushed it into oversold territory, which could attract bargain hunters if sentiment stabilizes.
• Neutral Sentiment: IBM heads into its July 22 earnings report with investors focused on whether the company can validate its AI and cloud momentum after the warning.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts at Zacks and others are debating whether the selloff is an opportunity or a sign to wait, reflecting uncertainty rather than a clear fundamental shift.
• Negative Sentiment: IBM’s preliminary Q2 miss and weak near-term outlook are the main reasons the stock is falling, as they suggest slower growth and margin pressure.
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms have announced securities-fraud investigations after the plunge, which can keep negative headlines around the stock.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst sentiment is turning more cautious, with some estimate reductions and technical warnings reinforcing bearish momentum.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on IBM shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Thursday. Wedbush set a $350.00 price target on shares of International Business Machines in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Argus lowered their price objective on shares of International Business Machines from $360.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. KeyCorp cut shares of International Business Machines to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of International Business Machines from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $292.89.

International Business Machines Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The stock has a market cap of $199.76 billion, a PE ratio of 18.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.68. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $263.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $263.58.

International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The technology company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.81 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $15.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.60 billion. International Business Machines had a net margin of 15.61% and a return on equity of 37.23%. The firm’s revenue was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.60 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that International Business Machines Corporation will post 12.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

International Business Machines Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were given a $1.69 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. This is a positive change from International Business Machines’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.68. This represents a $6.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. International Business Machines’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.77%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Foster Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of International Business Machines by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Foster Group Inc. now owns 2,507 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $742,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. CVA Family Office LLC raised its holdings in shares of International Business Machines by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 2,389 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $708,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. boosted its holdings in International Business Machines by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. now owns 905 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $264,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in International Business Machines by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,693 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $798,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. Finally, Sandbox Financial Partners LLC grew its position in International Business Machines by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Sandbox Financial Partners LLC now owns 8,969 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,657,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.96% of the company’s stock.

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.